Summer Surprises
by alecygoodness22
Summary: Picks up where season 3 left off with some important changes. Most of the old gang is reunited by the end of the summer with the addition of a several characters seen in seasons 1 & 2. Starts out Logan/Parker, but doesn't last long. Not a LoVe fic, sorry.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:**** This is my first actually posted fanfic. Everything else up to this point has been written to the hard drive and nowhere else, so constructive criticism only please, unless you want to tell me you love it and then feel free to review or PM me as often as you like. That being said, this is basically a continuation from where season 3 left off with some important changes.**

**Disclaimer:**** Not mine, if it were, it would definitely be back next season. None of the characters belongs to me; I just like to take them off the shelf to play. Please don't sue, all you might get is my computer.**

**Changes to end of Season 3-**** Piz really did tape he and Veronica for initiation to the Castle like Wallace, but never realized anyone else but the brothers would see it. Piz quits and Wallace is booted for trying to help Veronica. She breaks up with him and Piz asks her to forgive him, but she says she can't right now. He decides to take the radio station internship while she goes to DC for hers to give her some space. Wallace goes to Chicago for the summer to visit his dad. Parker and Logan didn't break up. She's mad that Logan still has feelings for Veronica, but agrees to go with he and Dick to Australia for the last 2 months of the summer. Veronica's dad does win the Sheriff's election. With him at the station and Veronica gone for most of the summer, he takes on Vinnie as his partner in the PI business. While Keith may not agree with some of his methods, he is good at what he does. He also hires Mac as a receptionist/computer hacker.**

**Australia, Wednesday, about 6 weeks into summer…**

**Parker, Logan, and Dick had been in Australia about a month and spent each day almost the same way. Parker was laid out in the sand on her towel, watching Logan and Dick slice through the waves as they surfed. She watched with concern as Logan cut through the crest of a large wave, but breathed a sigh of relief when she finally saw him pop back out. He made it almost back to shore before sliding off the board and carrying it back up the beach to where she was sitting. He dug his board in to the sand, and sat down. He was smiling at Parker and just peeling the top half of his wet suit down when he heard a familiar voice, **

"**Lily!" **

**Logan whipped his head around frantically searching for the owner of the voice. "Lily, stop!" **

**He turned around and spotted a guy in a blue baseball hat, sunglasses, t-shirt, and board shorts; chasing a little blonde girl who is about to toddle past him on her way to the water. Just as she's about to go by, Logan reaches his arm around the little girl and scoops her up. She giggles as he hoists her in the air before setting her down in the sand between his legs. "And just where do you think you were going missy?" he asked while tickling her. The little girl just continued to giggle and squirm.**

"**Thanks man," Logan finally heard his friend's familiar voice say behind him, while panting a little to catch his breath. **

**He didn't bother to turn around, just smirked and said, "No problem dude, you always did have trouble chasing the ladies, I guess that's why you left it to me." "Logan?" mystery man said before coming around to stand in front of him.**

**Parker looked back and forth between the two, completely confused. Logan was just giving the guy a goofy grin, while the other guy stared at him in shock. Dick noticed the new additions, made his way from the water to where Parker was sitting, and dug his board into the ground next to her. Startled, she jumped and gave a yelp. That seemed to break Logan and his mystery friend out of their daze, as they both turned to look at her and Dick. Dick was laughing as the turned his gaze from her to the other two guys. He thought the new guy looked familiar, but couldn't quite tell with the hat and sunglasses on. **

"**Dick?" mystery man said. **

**Recognizing the voice, he stopped mid laugh, "DK?"**

**In Washington DC, same day…**

**Veronica walked into her handler's office and took a seat. She had been there a little over a month now and was beginning to wonder if she would ever get to see a real case. She passed by conference rooms full of agents being briefed everyday, but she was never allowed to stop and listen or participate. They had taken her and the other 4 interns to dinner at the White House last week though. She had gotten to meet the President and First Lady, and even speak with them for a few minutes. So far it looked like that might be the highlight to her trip. **

"**So what fascinating paperwork are we going to file today?" She asked upon seeing 3 or 4 open case files on Maria's desk. **

**Maria smiled and looked back at the files hesitantly before walking to the door and shutting it. "Actually, you might just be able to help me." **

**Veronica smiled and sat up straight in her seat. "Really? With a real, on-going case?" **

**Maria sat back down in her chair before leaning her elbows on the desk. "It's not a very high priority case or anything, but you are familiar with the subjects, so you may be helpful." Upon sight of Veronica's obviously confused look, she continued. "The subjects are Jacob Kane and Richard Casablancas." **

"**I thought the IRS already nailed Mr. Casablancas. I thought he was being incarcerated at the end of the year, and what does Jake Kane have to do with him?" Veronica mused. **

"**He is," Maria said. "What we're interested in is a hotel property Mr. Kane purchased from him last year. The hotel was never opened, but Mr. Kane makes regular, rather large, deposits into an account set up in the hotel's name. There are regular debits from the account including payroll for two maids, a chef, and a groundskeeper. The Australian government has laws that indicate for the hotel to remain a commercial property, it must be in service or actively worked upon to achieve an open status or it shall be relinquished to the government for resale. Mr. Kane has had the property for just over a year now and while it was worked on for the first 2-3 months, no work has been done since, and it has never been opened for business. At first we thought it may be connected to Mr. Casablancas' real estate scheme, but there does appear to be someone living at the hotel. The staff are all very tight lipped and obviously paid off. They simply refer to him as Mr. Reynolds. The car he drives and the insurance are all listed in Mr. Kane's name. Surveillance photos all show a man appearing in his mid twenties, sometimes with a young girl. He is always dressed in casual clothing and usually has on a baseball cap and sunglasses, his beard and mustache make it hard for us to identify him. As far as we can tell from the company photos Mr. Kane's chief of security sent us, he is Keith Reynolds, CEO of Kane Pacific, but according to the government, he doesn't exist. What I need you to do is tell me if you recognize the man, given your history with the Kane family."**

**Veronica was silent for a minute letting it all sink in. **_"Mr. Reynolds…It couldn't be... 'A man in his early twenties, sometimes with a young girl' …or could it? The beard and mustache would make him look older,"_** she thought to herself before finally asking to see the photos. What she saw made her fight to keep her voice calm and steady and her face passive. "I'm sorry, I don't recognize him. I really wish I could have helped, but besides a couple of friends' parents that work for Mr. Kane, and maybe some of his house staff, I just don't know that much about his company. When his daughter and I were friends, we never really talked about his company."**

**Maria looked her over carefully, she could swear there was something Veronica wasn't telling her. "What about his son? Didn't you two date before he disappeared with the Manning baby?" **

**Veronica blanched briefly at that before answering. "We obviously didn't have the relationship I thought we did, because I don't even know where he went. I worked with a couple of agents then trying to find him. He never even told me he got Meg pregnant. I didn't know until I went to visit her and confronted him about it. We both went to see Meg before she died, and she asked us to keep the baby safe and not let her parents send it to some religious commune they had picked out. Right after she died, he told me the Mannings wouldn't let him see the baby. Next thing I know, he's missing and so is the baby. He called once right after he left, I tried to get him to come home, but he refused. I haven't talked to him since." **

**Maria seemed satisfied with her answer and let things drop. "Alright, just forget I asked. I wasn't supposed to let you see or know any of this." **

**Veronica plastered a fake smile on her face. "No problem. I'm not a big fan of Mr. Kane myself, or Dick Sr. for that matter. Believe me; I would have loved to help you nail them." **

**Maria chuckled and seemed to accept her answer as she rose from her chair. "Alright Mars, let's head out front and see what the chief has for you today."**

**Meanwhile, back in Australia…**

**Parker's eyes darted between all three boys and the little girl playing in the sand at Logan's feet. They all seemed to know each other, but she certainly didn't know this guy DK, and she was pretty sure she had never heard Logan or Dick mention him before.**

"**Dude, what the hell? Have you been hiding out here this whole time? You've missed some messed up shit man. Is that Meg's kid? Holy shit man, you're a dad." Dick ranted making Parker even more confused as she watched Duncan share an amused look with Logan before letting out a short laugh and starting to answer Dick's questions.**

"**Yeah, I hitched a ride to Mexico in the sheriff's trunk, and then Astrid and Cliff brought Lily across the border and picked me up. They dropped us at the airport and this was the first international flight out, we've been here ever since."**

**Logan had been staring at the little girl, but finally looked up and spoke, "You named her Lily?" He had a kind of sad smile on his face that Parker couldn't identify. She watched the same smile form on Duncan's face and Dick looked at the sand uncomfortably. **

"**Yeah, and she gets more like her name sake every day. If they call it the terrible twos, I hope like hell she's getting it over with early, otherwise, they'll have to invent a whole new category just for her." Duncan said with amusement. **

**Logan chuckled, "That would be typical Lily fashion wouldn't it."**

**Having finally been ignored long enough and being more confused than ever; Parker cleared her throat and stood up. When they turned to look at her, she held her hand out to Duncan, "Hi, I'm Parker." **

**That seemed to finally get Logan's attention as he stood, careful not to hit Lily, and moved to stand next to Parker. He threw an arm around her shoulder and kissed her cheek, "Sorry babe. Duncan this is my girlfriend Parker. Parker, this is Duncan, my best friend from middle and high school." **

**Duncan smiled and shook her hand while Dick piped in, "Dude, that hurts, I thought I was your best friend." The other three laughed. **

**When they caught their breath, Parker spoke again. "So you guys all went to high school together." Logan shot a warning look to Dick over her head. "You must know my roommate and…" **

"**Hey Parker, why don't you come with me to the snack bar for a minute and let these two catch up?" She didn't even have time to respond before Dick had his arm slung around her shoulder and was steering her up the sand. She did catch the sudden look of relief that swam across Logan's face and the sudden tensing of Duncan's though. She decided not to question it for now. She would ask Logan about it later, and if he wouldn't give her a straight answer, she was sure she could get it out of Dick.**

**Logan and Duncan watched them walk up the beach before both became fascinated with the sand at their feet. They stood that way for a couple minutes before Lily broke their silence. She giggled happily while smashing mounds of sand as a hermit crab tried to scuttle away from her. Duncan finally spoke, but his eyes were still trained on his daughter, and his voice was barely more than a hoarse whisper, "So how've you been?" **

"**Don't you really mean how's **_**she**_** been?" Logan asked catching his eye as Duncan finally turned to look at him. **

**He at least had the decency to look sheepish as he responded, "Both."**

**Logan hesitated for a moment before finally choosing Dick's words to sum it up, "dude, you've missed a lot of shit." They both chuckled before becoming serious again as Logan sat back down on Parker's towel and motioned for Duncan to take a seat. He stared at the waves for a moment before turning back with a smile on his face, "how long have you got? This might take a while." **

**Duncan slowly smiled as he picked Lily up and put her in his lap, "All the time in the world…"**

**Up at the beach bar Dick ordered their drinks, turned on his stool to look down the beach to where his two friends were now sitting, and felt Parker shift into the same position. He knew she was curious but wasn't sure what Logan or Duncan thought she should know. She was just about to open her mouth when he spoke, "Before you ask, we all went to high school together, ALL of us." He looked at her to make sure she caught his meaning. "Senior year a bunch of crap happened and Duncan skipped town. None of us have seen or heard from him since. I know that doesn't help much, but I don't know all the details and the ones I do I'm not sure if I should tell cause they involve other people; people that could be hurt if I said something they didn't want you to know. It just brings up a lot of bad memories for a lot of people. Let's just leave it at a few people died and a couple more almost did." He stopped and turned to look at Parker, whose eyes looked like they were about to bulge out of her head.**

"**Look, just forget I said anything. Ask Logan; let him and Duncan decide what they want to tell you. Don't be surprised if they don't want to talk about it though. It took them a long time to get over it, and it wasn't pretty." Dick turned back around to pick up their drinks and threw some money on the bar. He turned to Parker and she had a puzzled look on her face, Dick just sighed, "Come on, let's get back before I eat my foot. I already have you going over murder conspiracies in your head. If Logan asks, I didn't say anything!" Parker just gave him a weird look and laughed before taking two of the drinks out of his hand and following him back down the beach.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:**** Again, not mine, please don't sue.**

**Friday, Neptune, CA…**

**Mac walked into Mars & Van Lowe Investigations with several tabloids in hand for Vinnie. She put them on the desk in his office, since he was on the phone, and went to sit at her own desk. Without Veronica home to drum up business on campus, it had been relatively slow since Keith went back to the Sheriff's office. Mac was just about to start working on getting a hold of a cheating husband's bank records when Vinnie's voice halted her. **

"**Man it must have been a slow week in Hollywood if they think a couple of Neptune's finest rich kids chilling on the beach is front page news." Mac got up and walked to his office. "Don't you and Veronica go to school with these two?" he asked as she rounded his desk to get a better look at the picture. **

**Mac laughed to herself as she read the caption. 'Two of Neptune's hottest; Dick Casablancas and Logan Echolls were found vacationing on the beaches of Australia this week. Bad boy Echolls appeared to have his rumored girlfriend and lovechild with him.' "Great, Logan's only been dating my roommate for 4 months and here's the press already jumping in and saying they have a love child. This kid looks at least one, maybe even two!" She looked at her watch to check the time, and then asked Vinnie if she could borrow the paper. **

"**Fine, just bring it back so I can catch up on the rest of the town's gossip."**

**Mac laughed and headed back to her desk. It was 2:30 there in Neptune, so Veronica should be getting off work in DC. She sat down, picked up the phone and dialed Veronica's cell, still laughing to herself as she waited for her to answer. When she finally picked up on the third ring, Mac greeted her with, "You and Logan don't have a secret love child I never knew about do you?" **

**It sounded like she choked before she answered. "**_**No. Now come on Mac, you know me, if I had a secret love child my dad would have me in a convent right now or at least cemented into my room with only a little window for food and water. Why do you ask?**_**"**

"**Are you anywhere near a newsstand?" Mac asked. **

"_**Uh, I passed one a couple blocks back, why? What's going on?**_**" Veronica complained on her way back up the street. **

"**Just go back and get a copy of **_**Star**_** magazine. Then check out the picture on page three." **

"_**What on earth are you doing reading Star Mac? Has Vinnie sucked out your brain?**_**" "Sort of, every Friday he has me buy him a copy of all the tabloids and the newspaper. The picture I wanted you to see was on the cover of our paper, but Vinnie found it in **_**Star**_** too. I just thought it was funny. Do you see it yet?"**

"_**Hold on, I'm paying for it now.**_**" Veronica said handing the man at the stand some money and flipping to page three. **

**There was silence on the phone for a while and Mac thought that maybe the phone cut out. "Veronica, you still there?" **

"_**What? Uh, yeah…still here...**_**" **

"**What happened? You were quiet for so long I thought maybe the phone cut out." Veronica was still so busy staring at the little blonde hair, blue-eyed girl in the picture, and the hand she was clenching on to, to hear Mac's voice. She couldn't see the other person's face, but after reading the small caption she didn't need to. '**_So he __**is**__ in Australia,_**' she thought to herself. **

"**Veronica…Veronica?" Mac said starting to worry. **

"_**What? Oh, sorry Mac. Listen; could you do me a favor? I remember seeing in the paper a couple months ago that Meg Manning's father died. Could you please call her mother for me and ask her to meet me for lunch next Friday when I get back?**_**" **

"**Sure, but what's going on? What does Mrs. Manning have to do with anything?" **

"_**I can't really tell you yet. If things go well at my lunch with her, I'll tell you everything. Just make sure you have your passport.**_**" **

**Mac was completely confused, but just said "Ok."**

**Veronica was just about to hang up when Mac's voice stopped her, "What are you going to do about Parker?" **

**This time Veronica was slightly confused before realization dawned that Mac probably thought she was trying to go after Logan. "**_**I may be chasing down an old flame, but Logan is definitely not it**_**." **

**Mac was relieved, but then turned green at her next thought, "…you and Dick never…" she asked hesitantly. **

**Veronica's eyes bugged out and she choked on her coffee again, "**_**Eww! No way! Where is your confidence in me today Q?**_**" **

**Mac breathed a sigh of relief. "I didn't think so, but I was just making sure." Veronica laughed. "**_**Okay, I've gotta run and check on a couple of things, but call me when you get an answer from Mrs. Manning. Thanks again.**_**" **

**Mac shook her head as she hung up, then dialed information to have them connect her to Mrs. Manning.**

**Sunday night, Australia**

**Parker and Logan were curled up on the couch in the living room of their suite while Dick was out with his girl friend of the day. Parker had suggested they watch the Grey's Anatomy mini-marathon that was on Bravo a half hour ago, but she had yet to watch it, she was just picking at her nails with a look of intense concentration on her face. Logan knew something was wrong, and had a good idea what it was, but asked her any way, "Hey, what's wrong. I know Grey's Anatomy is your favorite, and you're not even watching." He grabbed her hand to get her to quit picking at it, and she looked up at him. **

"**What's going on Logan? Who is this guy Duncan really? Why did Dick rush me off so fast when I wanted to know if he knew Mac, Wallace, and Veronica? I tried to ask Dick but all he gave me was some B.S. about it not being his business. It has to do with **_**her**_** doesn't it?" she yelled, waving her hands in the air. "I swear, I come halfway around the world with you and she's still hanging over my head!"**

**Logan grabbed her flailing hands before she could hit him. "Would you slow down? Just calm down and I'll answer as best as I can." She tucked her legs under her and turned to face him so he continued. "He's exactly who I told you he was the other day. His name is Duncan and he's been my best friend since middle school." **

"**If he's your best friend then how come I've never met him before? How come you never talk about him?" she interrupted. **

"**That's where it gets kind of complicated, I'll just give you the basics, anything else is up to Duncan. Just leave Veronica and Mac out of it, at least until we get home. They're better off not knowing for right now." **

**She looked like she was going to protest but Logan grabbed her hand and told her to trust him and she backed down. He warned her to get comfortable before he started because even the short version was going to take a while. She said she was ready so he continued. **

"**Our parents ran in the same circles when we were younger, and Duncan and I were on the soccer team together in middle school. His sister Lily and I started dating right before we started high school. We dated for a little over a year until she was, she was uh," he stopped, scratched his eyebrow, and got up to pace before continuing, "uh, she was killed. I had a lot of issues that year between my mom having enough of my dad's abuse and killing herself, then right before the summer Duncan and Veronica figured out it was my dad that had killed Lily. That's who Duncan named his daughter after."**

**He stopped for a minute trying to decide what else to tell her. **

**She grabbed his hand, stopping his pacing, and squeezed it. "God Logan, I'm so sorry." **

"**She was the first girl I really loved ya know, but uh, she was cheating on me. We were broken up at the time, but would have probably gotten back together. I had even come back from a trip to Mexico with the guys to talk to her. I left a note in her car telling her we needed to talk the day she died. It turns out not only was she sleeping with Weevil, but she was having an affair with my dad too." He sat back down and decided to push on and get it all off his chest. "It was so stupid! My dad taped them having sex in our pool house, when Lily found out she stole the tapes and hid them back at her house. Dad went after her when he found them missing knowing if they got leaked to the press it would ruin his career. Lily was by the pool when he found her, and she told him she wouldn't give them back and he'd never find them, so he picked up the ash tray and back handed her with it. She collapsed on the cement and when dad saw all the blood, he threw the ash tray in the pool and took off. Duncan came home from a soccer game and found her sprawled on the ground in a pool of blood." **

**He stopped again for a second and looked up at Parker. She had tears glistening in her eyes so he reached out wipe them away. "Hey, don't cry." **

"**I can't help it," she sniffled, "that's like, the saddest thing I've ever heard." **

"**You better let me get out the rest before this sentimental moment passes then," he said with a slight smile. She sniffled and wiped her eyes quickly before returning her hands to intertwine with Logan's in her lap, **

"**Sorry, continue."**

**Logan took a deep breath, "okay, so Junior year Duncan dated this friend of Veronica's, Meg. They broke up right before the summer. Then right at the beginning of Senior year there was a bus crash. A bunch of kids in the journalism class took a field trip to the old Shark Field. Everyone took the bus there, but the bus smelled rank, so Dick and Beaver called a limo that brought back them, Duncan, Gia, and a couple others. They asked Meg and Veronica to ride too, but they both said they'd take the bus since things were weird between Duncan and Meg. They stopped at a gas station on the way back and Veronica missed the bus, so Weevil gave her a ride. They saw the limo pulled off next to a guardrail and stopped, the bus had crashed through it and into the water below. Meg was the only one who survived the crash, but she was in a coma for 3 or 4 months. When she came out of it, Duncan and Veronica were the first ones to see her and found out she was pregnant. Her parents wanted her to give it up for adoption or let it be raised on one of those religious communes, they wouldn't let Duncan anywhere near her. They didn't even want him to know about the baby, but her sister had told him. Meg died from a blood clot so they had to take the baby early. Duncan signed as the baby's father and hauled her out of there as fast as he could, and evidently he's been hiding out here since."**

**When Parker sat in silence for a few minutes Logan finally tilted her head so he could look her in the eyes, "You okay?" **

"**Sorry, I'm just trying to let it all sink in. You sure this isn't from some movie?" she quipped trying to get him to crack a smile. **

**It worked, Logan snorted before replying, "Only the one they'll make of my life. Sometimes I forget there are really people out there that didn't read all the tabloid gossip about this stuff. It kind of feels good to get it all out there though."**

"**And who's Beaver? You mentioned him a couple time, but I have no idea who that is."**

**Logan hesitated for a moment, "Beaver is what we called Dick's brother Cassidy. He died right after graduation. There's more to it, but you should ask Veronica, Mac, or Dick. I'm not sure what they do and don't want public."**

"**I don't care about them like I care about you. It took a lot for you to open up like that, so thank you, for letting me in," Parker said before leaning in for a scorching kiss. Logan buried one hand in her hair and wrapped the other one around her back as he leaned back and pulled her on top of him. Both their shirts were on the floor and Parker was going for the zipper on his shorts when Logan pulled back and stopped her. He knew no matter how much Parker said she was ready to have sex, she wasn't, not since her rape last September. They had come close on several occasions, but Logan could always tell from the way she started to tremble that she just wasn't ready yet.**

**When he pulled away, Parker sat up and grabbed her shirt before turning back and staring at Logan for a few moments. **

"**See something you like?" Logan quipped.**

**She cracked a smile and gave him another peck on the lips before settling her head on his chest. "How did I ever find a guy like you?" she asked while drawing lazy patterns on his side. **

"**Bad luck maybe," Logan said under his breath. **

**She smacked him lightly. "No, I'm serious. Most guys would have just bottled up and blown me off, but you opened up and let me in, that means a lot to me Logan. Most guys definitely wouldn't have been as understanding and patient as you have either." **

"**What can I say; I have practice with the damaged." **

**She gave him an odd look but he pretended not to notice, so she let it slide, and turned his face so she could see his eyes. "One day soon Logan Echolls, I will show you just how much you mean to me." With that, she gave him a lingering kiss then hopped off the couch. **

**Logan opened his eyes and looked at her, "Is that it?" he joked. **

**Parker laughed and held out her hand, "Come on handsome let's get some sleep. I've got a big day with a toddler tomorrow and you're supposed to be hanging out with the boys." She tried to pull him off the couch, but only succeeded in getting him to sit up. She walked to the door to their room and stopped looking over her shoulder and batting her eyes at him before saying in her best whiny voice, "You coming to bed Logie?" **

"**Tell me you did not just call me Logie," he said with a wolfish grin as he chased her into their room and shut the door.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:**** I'm not sure how many chapters this story is going to end up, but I have about 5 or 6 written so far. I'll try to update at least once a week. I don't have a beta, so if you find a mistake, let me know where and I'll try to get it fixed, or if anyone wants to beta for me, let me know. Sorry in advance that this chapter is so short. **

**Disclaimer:**** yup, still not mine…**

**Australia, Boys day…**

**Parker had just left with Lily to take her to the park, and the guys were getting ready to head down to the beach. "You know, I can't remember a single day since I left Neptune that I haven't spent all day with Lily. This is gonna be great," Duncan announced. Dick and Logan just shared a look before continuing to put their wet suits on. Duncan looked between the two, the smile fading from his face, "Alright, you guys have been way too quiet, especially you Dick. What's going on?" **

**Dick and Logan shared another look before Logan finally broke the silence, "I told Parker everything last night," when no one said anything he continued, "well, obviously not **_**everything**_**, but all the stuff about my dad and Lily. I skipped all the stuff about Beaver," his eyes flicked to Dick before returning to Duncan, "and you, Veronica, and all the crap with your families, I figured that's you guy's business and you can tell her if you want."**

**Duncan's eyes slid over to Dick, then back to Logan, "What do you mean you skipped the stuff about Beaver? What happened? I'm surprised he's not tagging along, it's not like him to miss a trip like this." **

**Dick swallowed and took a deep breath before answering. "Cassidy's dead. He jumped off the roof of the Grande after graduation last year." Duncan's eyes bulged out, but before he could say anything Dick rushed to get the rest out, "Evidently our good ole Mayor Woody liked the boys, and he molested Cass and a couple other guys back in little league. The other two guys decided to go public with it whether he wanted to or not. He's the one who blew up the bus that day because the other two guys were on it." Dick stopped and picked up his board, "I'm gonna head down stairs, I need some air." **

**Logan and Duncan watched him leave and Duncan was still staring wide-eyed at the door when Logan spoke. "He'll be okay, just give him a few minutes. His dad was back in town before we left, guilt tripping him. I think this might be the first time he's talked about any of this. He tried to bring it up before we left, but I blew him off." **

**Duncan turned his gaze back to Logan, his jaw clenching in the process, "So what then, Beaver just suddenly felt guilty and decided to take a leap?" **

**Logan could tell how angry he was and knew he would be even madder by the time he heard the rest. "Ah, no, not exactly; it's a long story that I don't know quite all the details to, but to make a long story short, Veronica figured things out. She went to her yearly visit and found out she had ****Chlamydia****. She obviously didn't get it from you and she thought you were the only one she had slept with, but it turns out mayor Goodman had ****Chlamydia**** and gave it to all 3 boys, since the other 2 were dead and not at the party, she figured that Beaver had to of raped her. Her dad went to arrest Gia's dad and Beaver cornered her on the roof before she could tell Mac anything. She thought her dad was on Mayor Goodman's plane and Beav told her she had 60 seconds to call him and say goodbye before he blew up the plane. He pulled a gun on her and used her own tazer on her. She couldn't get her dad to answer and Beav detonated the bomb. Veronica watched it blow up. I don't really know how, but she managed to get me a text message to meet her on the roof. I tackled Beav and got the gun from him, but he had totally cracked by then, and I guess he realized how screwed he was cause he just walked backwards right off the roof. The next thing we hear is a thump, some crunching glass and a car alarm going off. Veronica asked me to take her home, so I did."**

**Duncan was silent for a few minutes as he tried to digest everything. Finally, he looked back up at Logan, "So Veronica's dad then, he's…" **

"**Oh, no, he's fine. The feds kicked him off the plane at the last second so he had to drive back instead. He's the Sheriff of Neptune again in fact." Logan quickly explained.**

**Duncan ran a hand through his hair, "God, I thought when I left things would get easier for her, instead I wasn't there when she needed me most. You were though, thanks man." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and stared at the floor before Logan spoke again. **

"**She's alright. She's tough, ya know? And she's got this huge heart that just keeps trying to get to the good in everything."**

"**Sounds like you're in love with her," Duncan commented shifting his feet. **

**Logan rolled his eyes, "Dude, I'll always love her, just like I'll always love Lily. After everything she's gone through this year though, she deserves to be happy and I can't seem to do anything but disappoint her." Duncan looked back up at that, "What do you mean? What happened to her **_**this**_** year?"**

"**The last couple years there's been a rapist on campus at Hurst. Veronica was all gung ho to go after the guy in the first place, but then Parker became a victim. Parker and Mac are roommates, and she went to some party while Mac and Veronica were gonna go to a concert or movie or something. They forgot the tickets in the room so they went back to get them, Parker had something on the door indicating it was 'occupied' so Veronica just ducked in and grabbed the tickets off the desk. It turns out Parker was in there with the rapist. She had been drugged at the party and the guy followed her back to her room. You can see why it hit a little close to home for her." Logan took a second to look at a wide eyed Duncan, "Anyways, Deputy Don was getting nowhere with the case, and Veronica was as usual getting too close, so she became a target. The guy was bold enough to drug her coke in the cafeteria when she was eating dinner. She was trying to get to her car when she collapsed, she managed to get to her keys and hit the alarm. When I saw the lights on her car start flashing and heard the alarm, I ran for it. The guy had taken off, so I got her back home. Halfway through the year she finally nailed the guy and got him locked up. We had broken up again and she started dating Wallace's roommate, this guy named Piz. I tried to tell her there was something about the guy I didn't like, but she wouldn't listen. They tapped him and Wallace to join some frat and Piz's initiation stunt was to tape him and Veronica in the buff. Evidently, he thought only the pledge master would see it, but it ended up in a campus wide e-mail. When Dick showed me, I went off on the guy and beat the crap out of him. Veronica dumped the guy, but yelled at me for kicking his ass and not letting her handle it herself. Then Parker got mad and told me she couldn't compete with Veronica and I had to convince her that I wanted to be with her and not V. That was right before we left." Logan finally finished.**

**Duncan gave him a questioning look, "So why **_**are**_** you with Parker if you still love Veronica?" **

"**Because, Veronica and I just aren't meant to be; her heart was never really mine to begin with. Besides, if you haven't noticed Parker is like two for the price of one, she's like Lily and Veronica rolled into one perfect, total package. Even when I told her all the bad stuff about me and my family last night, all she could see was the good. She makes me feel like I'm normal." **

**Duncan could see the light spark in Logan's eyes as he talked about Parker. "I'm glad. She seems really great, and you deserve to be happy." **

"**So do you man," Logan said with a slow smile. Duncan cleared his throat, "Alright, come on; let's get down to the beach before Dick scares all the chicks away." **


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed the first 3 chapters, you guys are great. Maybe I'll actually get around to posting some of the other half-finished stories I have lying around now. Thanks again. Now, on with the show…**

**Disclaimer: Still not mine, but if Logan and Duncan decided to be my slaves, I wouldn't be upset.**

**Early Friday morning, Washington DC**

"**You got my flight fixed, right?" Veronica asked Mac as she did a last walk through of her room to make sure she had everything.**

"_**Yes, I got you on a red-eye out of there at 4:15 am arriving here at 6:25 am.**_**" Veronica checked her watch "Ok, it's 12:20 here now, I should be done packing in the next 30 minutes, so as soon as I get off the phone with you, I'll call a cab and be on my way to the airport. I'll drive my self crazy if I sit here any longer. At least in the airport I can wander around. You have everything set up for lunch with Mrs. Manning right?" **

"_**Seriously V, you do realize who you're talking to right?**_**" **

"**Of course you do, I'm sorry Mac, I've just been going crazy here for the last 6 days. It may have something to do with the 5 double espressos I've had though too." Mac laughed at the other end of the line, "**_**Ok, go call your cab, and I'll see you and Wallace in a few hours**_**." **

**Veronica stopped her pacing for a minute, "Wallace is coming home too?" **

"_**Well, when you said to round up the cavalry on this one, I thought he was included**_**." Mac said, sounding slightly confused. **

"**You really did think of everything didn't you?" **

"_**Yep, between the money we saved switching you and Wallace both to red-eye flights; I figure we should have enough for about half of a ticket to Australia.**_**" **

"**Have I told you yet just how much I love having you on my team?" Veronica asked. **

"_**No, I seemed to have missed that fruit basket.**_**" **

"**In that case, make sure to remind me to get you one. Seriously, though, you're the best. I'm gonna go and call that cab now. I'll see you guys in a few hours." **

"_**Ok, just try not to get in any trouble on the plane.**_**" **

"**Who? ****Moi****?" Veronica asked innocently. **

"_**Just go call your cab already.**_**" **

"**Yes ma'am," she said saluting the phone. **

"_**Wallace's plane should land before yours, so if you don't see us, just call one of us, we'll probably be down at the baggage claim.**_**" **

"**Thanks again Mac. Bye." **

"_**Bye V.**_**"**

**Veronica put her cell phone down on the night stand and gave the room a once over before taking a phone book out of the drawer and calling the cab company. She sat on the bed one last time before stuffing the tabloid with Logan's picture in her messenger bag, then grabbed the handles of both her suitcases and shut off the light. She wheeled her stuff to the elevator and went to wait for the cab down in the lobby. **_Just think Veronica, by this time tomorrow you could be on your way to Australia. The question is; will it be to bring them home, or to tell them they need to pack and run. _**She didn't have much time to think to herself before the cab was blowing its horn outside. **_Neptune, California, here I come._

**Neptune, CA Friday afternoon**

**Veronica arrived at the restaurant early; she wanted to make sure she had everything in order before Mrs. manning arrived. She showed up right on time, and she stood to shake her hand. **

"**Thank you for agreeing to have lunch with me Mrs. Manning. I was very sorry to hear about your husband."**

**She nodded her head to her in greeting, "I find that hard to believe. I must admit I was intrigued and a bit surprised to hear you wanted to meet with me. What exactly is this about?" she asked.**

"**I know you have some questions, and hopefully I'll be able to answer them all, but first I need you to answer a couple for me," Veronica said cautiously, trying to gauge her reaction. **

**She seemed to think it over for a moment before speaking again, "Alright, you have my attention Miss Mars. What is it you want to know?"**

**Veronica let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. "I know this a sore subject, so I'm just going to get what I have to say out and over with." She glanced back up at her but when she didn't say anything and simply raised her eyebrow, she took it as a sign to continue. "I know that Meg and I weren't on the best of terms before she died, but we did talk. I went to see her in the hospital right after she woke up. She told me that she had wanted to keep the baby, but you and Mr. Manning wanted her to give it up for adoption. I didn't think much of it at the time because I thought she was doing better, but she asked if anything happened to her, would I make sure that the baby was ok, and not let it be raised by some religious place you had mentioned to her. I thought she would get better and everything would be fine, so I said yes. I guess she must have known I was placating her and told Duncan the same thing when he went in to see her, because after she died he just took off before I got a real chance to talk to him."**

**The waiter came and took their order and Veronica looked up again to gauge her reaction. Her face was drawn and pale and it looked almost as if she had aged 10 years in the time she was talking. She hoped what she had to say next would catch her attention. "But what if I could offer you a chance to be in your granddaughter's life? What if I told you that while I was doing my internship in Washington this summer, I came across someone who might be able to track Duncan down; would you be willing to drop the charges against him and award him full custody if I were able to convince him to come back home?"**

**Veronica watched her clench and unclench her jaw several times before she finally looked back up at her and began to answer. There were unshed tears in her eyes as he spoke, "I would give anything to have her back in my life. My husband completely shut down when Megan died, you saw what it did to my family, but having my granddaughter back would be like having a small part of Meg back with me." She seemed to think for a moment before speaking again, "I'll agree to drop the charges and give Duncan custody if I can have her at least 1 day each week. Do you think he will agree to that?"**

**Veronica sighed in relief, "I can't be completely certain, but it definitely sounds reasonable, and I don't think Duncan would object to it." **

**The waiter came back with their food and they ate in silence for a few minutes before Mrs. Manning spoke, "What will you need to find him?" **

**Veronica took a deep breath, this was going to be the tricky part, "About $15,000," she said with a slight wince, but hurried to continue, "unfortunately the only person I could track down is currently out of the country and won't be back for about a month, so I would have to fly to where they are. Then if all goes well I would be back by the end of the summer with Duncan and your granddaughter in tow. It may be cheaper to wait until my contact returns, but if he doesn't have a way to get in touch with Duncan, then I would still have to fly there and track him down myself."**

**It only took Mrs. Manning a few seconds to consider the two options. "I'll give you $25,000 now, and another $10,000 if you really can bring them back." **

**Veronica was speechless for a moment before she got her bearings back. "Thank you Mrs. Manning, that's certainly a lot more than what I was expecting. $25,000 is more than enough and I'd rather you kept the other $10,000. Meg was my only friend when Duncan broke up with me the first time. I'm so sorry how things turned out." **

**She nodded again and gave Veronica a watery smile. "I'll have my lawyer draw up the custody papers and drop the kidnapping charges. A courier should bring them by your father's office this afternoon." She stood to leave, "I just want to be a part of my granddaughter's life, I've missed so much already." **

**Veronica shook her hand across the table, "I promise you Mrs. Manning, as soon as I have any information, I'll let you know." She gave Veronica a slight smile before turning and leaving.**

**On her way back to her car, Veronica pulled her cell out and dialed Mac.**

"_**Hello**_**"**

"**Do you and Wallace have your Passports?"**

"_**We sure do**_**."**

"**Great, then get packing, and get us 3 seats on the next flight to Sydney. I'm hoping they're still there. I don't think they were coming back until the week before school, but call Parker and make sure."**

"_**You know she's going to ask why I want to know**_**."**

"**Just tell her the 3 of us decided to come hang out for the last 2 weeks of summer before we had to head back to school, and tell her not to tell Logan and Dick."**

"_**And when she mentions that there's no way she wants you around Logan**_**…"**

"**Tell her I have another guy on the brain and Logan and I are nothing but friends. If she can't deal with that, we'll just have to work her out of the plan, but it will go a lot smoother if we can get her on board."**

"_**No problem chief**_**."**

"**I'll see you back at the office in a few."**

"_**Ok, bye**_**."**

_Please still be there Duncan. _**Veronica thought to herself before cranking the engine and pulling out of the parking lot.**

**When she returned to the office, Mac was calling Parker; as soon as she saw Veronica, she switched it to speakerphone.**

"_**Hey Mac, what's going on? I didn't expect to hear from you this summer**_**."**

"**Hey Parker, we were just wondering how it was going down under?"**

"_**We? Is Veronica there with you**_**?"**

"**Hey Parker!" Veronica chimed in.**

"**Wallace is here too."**

"**What's up white chick?" he threw in.**

**There was laughter on the other end "**_**Hey guys! It's going great, the weather down here is amazing. It gets pretty hot, but there's almost always a nice breeze, and it's not nearly as humid as Neptune either**_**."**

"**How long are you guys staying down there before you come back?" Mac asked.**

"_**Uh, I think we're here for about 2 or 3 more weeks, then we have to be back for classes. Why**_**?"**

"**Well…" Veronica said, "We were thinking about coming down there for a couple weeks since all Mac and I have done all summer is work."**

**There was silence on the other end for a minute.**

"_**If you want to come down here that's fine, but if you're after Logan**_**…"**

"**Logan and I are just friends, nothing more. We've been a part of each other's lives forever, and while part of me will always love him, I'm just not in love with him." Veronica interrupted.**

"_**Alright. When are you guys planning to come? Do you need us to come get you from the airport**_**?"**

"**We were planning on flying out late tonight or early tomorrow to get a good price." Mac told her. "And actually, we were kind of hoping you wouldn't tell the guys we were coming." Veronica added.**

"_**Ok, but why**_**?"**

**Mac looked to Veronica and finally Veronica answered. "I'm not sure if they'd really want us there, but we're not really coming to hang out with them, so it doesn't matter. We're just looking to get away from it all for a couple weeks."**

"_**I still don't really see why but ok, I won't tell them**_**."**

"**We'll call you tomorrow after we land and rent a car."**

"_**Do you know where you're gonna stay yet**_**?"**

"**Not really, we just figured we'd drive til we found someplace that caught our eye, probably someplace right on the beach." Mac said trying to bait her.**

"**Oh yeah, maybe they'll have a spa too, I could use a good massage." Veronica threw in.**

"**And what exactly am I supposed to do while you're doing all that?" Wallace asked.**

**Parker laughed again, "**_**Well if you guys want all that, you could stay here. We can all go hang out at the spa and the pool, ooh, or shopping, while the boys go do…whatever it is boys do. I know they were talking about going para-sailing if that interests you**_**."**

"**Hell yeah, now that's my kind of activity." Wallace said rubbing his hands together and actually starting to get excited.**

**All the girls laughed. "We'll see you tomorrow afternoon Parker."**

"_**Ok, see you guys tomorrow**_**."**

**Mac hung up the line and turned to Veronica, "Tell me again how we're going to afford 3 tickets to Sydney and 2 weeks at whatever hotel Logan is at." **

**Veronica smiled as a messenger came through the door. "Thank you," she said as she signed for a large padded envelope. She opened it up and dumped the contents onto Mac's desk. Her smile only grew as she watched Mac and Wallace's eyes grow to the size of saucers. "Didn't I mention Mrs. Manning gave me $25,000?" **

"**Dang V, I don't think I've ever seen this much money in my life! Can I throw this on the floor and roll in it?" **

**Veronica laughed before putting the money back into the envelope and picking up the packet of papers that was in with it. **

**Mac came to stand behind her, "What's that? Your contract?" she joked. **

**Veronica became serious as she looked over the paperwork, "No, they're the papers dropping the charges on Duncan and giving him custody of the baby. Which is why we're going to Australia, that's where he's been hiding out." **

"**Wow." Mac said. **

"**Yeah, so go ahead and get us booked on a flight, go home, pack whatever you need to. I'm gonna make a copy of this, take it over to Kane software, and have Clarence look it over. I figure that makes one less hurdle when we get there if I already have 'daddy's' stamp of approval." Veronica said with a fake sugary sweet smile.**

"**What are you gonna do if they won't let you in to see him?" Wallace asked. **

**Mac and Veronica shared a smile. "Let's just say that Mac and I have a little leverage when it comes to Mr. Kane and his Chief of Security; and if that doesn't work I'm sure I can scare him with the surveillance photos the FBI has of his property in Australia which would put Duncan at risk."**

"**Dang, that summer job did come in handy didn't it?" **

**Veronica just smiled as she walked out the door, "You have no idea Wallace, you have no idea."**


	5. Chapter 5

**I got antsy and decided to just post the next chapter. Hope you guys enjoy! Thanks again to all those of you who have reviewed, now read the rest and review some more… please…**

**Disclaimer: Still not mine, although the resort I'm using is real**

**Saturday afternoon, Sydney airport, Australia-**

**Veronica stared out the window as their plane taxied to a stop at the terminal. She'd been quiet for the last hour just listening to her ipod and staring out into nothing. Mac was beginning to think she was in some kind of trance, but as soon as the plane came to a stop at the terminal, she jumped out of her seat, tripping over Mac and landing on Wallace in her haste to get to the aisle. "Sorry guys," she said trying to collect herself. **

"**Yo super-fly, just chill. It's gonna be fine. We're gonna have a good vacation and bring back your boy and his kid, no sweat." Wallace tried to reassure her. **

**She smiled and leaned back down to hug him. "Thanks BFF." **

"**No problem."**

**Mac just shook her head, she could tell that Veronica was running on nervous energy and had to admit she was a bit nervous herself. They each grabbed their carry-on bag from the overhead compartment, walked down the concourse, and headed towards the baggage claim. After they got their bags, they loaded them on a dolly and headed to the rental car desk. Veronica had reserved a small SUV, but they were out, so they were upgraded to a luxury car instead, which wasn't so bad. They ended up with a gray BMW 5-series complete with leather seats, sunroof, and navigation system. **

**Wallace whistled as Veronica popped the trunk, "Man V, if this is the car; I can't wait to see our room!" **

**Veronica laughed as she pulled out her phone to call Parker and waited for her to answer. They talked for a couple minutes as Mac called shotgun and Wallace climbed into the backseat. When Veronica climbed in, she gave Mac the address of the hotel so she could put it into the navigation system. "Alright kiddies, let's roll. Parker says it should take us 2-3 hours to get there depending on traffic. Oh, and Wallace, it looks like you get your own room, each suite only has 1 bed, unless of course you want to share a bed with Dick." She joked as she started the car and put her sunglasses on. **

"**Nah, that's alright V, I think I'll tough it out in a big ole bed all to myself." **

**Mac and Veronica just laughed as Veronica opened the sunroof and checked to make sure they were all ready to go. Mac clicked her seat-belt in place and smiled, "Let's roll Jeeves."**

**When they pulled up in front of the Bannister's Point Lodge, about 2 & ½ hours later Wallace let out another whistle. "Damn, this place looks expensive!" **

**Mac smiled at Veronica, "The exchange rate is a great thing in this country. Two suites here for a night are cheaper than Logan's room at the Grande." **

**Veronica popped the trunk again and a bellboy came to take their bags. She pulled her sunglasses down and inspected their surroundings. The place was definitely nice, she tried to push to the back of her mind the fact that Logan had talked about bringing her here for their 1 year anniversary before they broke up, it figured he would still decide to come here anyway.**

**Mac spun around in a circle gawking at their surroundings too, "I can't believe we're really here. Promise me we'll get to spend a couple days sight seeing." **

"**I promise we'll definitely hit the town tomorrow and try to check out a couple of the neighboring towns in the next couple weeks before we have to go back. This is definitely one experience I don't want to lock myself in a room for." Veronica promised while linking her arm through Mac's and turning to make sure Wallace was going to follow before making their way into the lobby.**

**Veronica made her way to the reception desk and put an overly perky smile on her face, "Hi, I'd like two suites for the next two weeks please, and if possible, on the same floor as my friends that are already here." **

**The attendant named Brad smiled at her, "Sure, what room are they in?" **

**Veronica turned to Mac, "Did you ask Parker what room they were in?" **

**When she shook her head no, Veronica turned to pout at Brad. "I can't remember, but there should be two rooms, both suites, under the last names Echolls and Casablancas." **

**Brad typed something into his computer then looked back up at her. "I'm sorry, but Mr. Echolls and Mr. Casablancas have both left explicit instructions not to give out any of their information." **

"**Can't you just ring the room and I'll get the number from them?" Mac asked. **

**He shook his head no, "I'm sorry, but I can't." **

**Mac rolled her eyes and went to go sit in a plush lobby chair while Veronica pulled out her cell and called Parker.**

"_**Hey, where are you guys? Are you here yet?**_**"**

"**Yeah, we just got here; we're at the reception desk. We were trying to figure out what floor you were on so we could get a room by yours, but the guy down here wouldn't tell us."**

"_**Sorry about that, there was some paparazzi here a couple weeks ago and they were hounding the Lodge for information about Logan and Dick so Logan told them not to give out any information if they wanted to keep our business. We're actually in two of the Penthouse suites on the 3**__**rd**__** floor. You know the boys, they always have to have the best where ever they go**_**."**

"**Yeah, I should have guessed," she said to Parker "we'd like two ocean-view luxury suites on the 2****nd**** floor please," she said to Brad handing him the prepaid bank card she had Msr. Manning's money loaded onto.**

"_**Do you want me to meet you guys there in the lobby or at your rooms?**_**"**

"**Uh, where are you at right now?"**

"_**Sitting by the pool, the guys are down at the beach, I think they said they were windsurfing today.**_**"**

"**I guess you can just meet us inside then."**

"_**Ok, I'll be there in just a sec.**_**"**

**Veronica hung up her cell and turned back to Brad. He handed her the credit card back along with a packet containing all of the activities and spa services offered. "Alright Miss Mars, if you'll follow Lex here, he'll show you to your rooms," he said pointing to a man just behind Veronica. "Please give us a ring if you need anything or would like to set up any activities or spa appointments."**

**Parker walked back inside just as Mac was getting up from her chair and waved across the lobby to them. "Hey guys, you made it," she said, giving each of them a hug. Mac and Veronica shared a pointed look, but then just shrugged. **

"**This way please." Lex said as the elevator doors opened.**

**They were all silent on the elevator ride up. Once Lex put their things in their rooms, Veronica tipped him and shut the door. Once he was gone Parker finally talked, "Ok, now that you're here, tell me the real reason." **

**Mac and Veronica gave each other uneasy glances and Wallace excused himself to his room. When he left Veronica turned back to Parker. "I'm here to bring my ex back home," she finally said. **

**Parker immediately jumped to the wrong conclusion, "What the crap? You and Logan were hardly even speaking when we left and I'm just starting to get him to open up to me. You can't decide to dump him and then come waltzing back a few months later and expect him to be yours again! Besides, you told me that you weren't coming after Logan, that you guys were just friends!" she shouted on the verge of tears.**

"**Just calm down. I didn't lie to you; I'm not here for Logan." Veronica tried to explain. **

**Parker just looked confused, then slightly sick, "Then who are you here for? Dick?" Veronica tried to fight the urge to gag. "No, definitely not. Geez, what is with you people trying to pin Dick on me?" **

**Parker looked confused again so Mac spoke up, "I asked her the same thing last week." Parker and Mac both laughed. **

"**Then I don't understand, who are you here for?" **

**Veronica went to her messenger bag, took out the picture she had swiped from her nightstand before they left, and handed it to Parker. It was the last picture of the Fab-Four from homecoming right before Lily died. She looked the picture over and recognized Logan and Veronica immediately. The other guy looked familiar, although she couldn't think from where, and the way Logan had his arms around the other girl, she assumed it must be Lily.**

**Veronica watched her reaction carefully. "This guy looks familiar, but I can't remember where I know him from." Parker finally said. "Is this Lily?" **

**Veronica came, took the frame back, and stared at it remembering the night it had been taken. "Yeah, that's her. I guess Logan told you about her and what happened?" **

"**Some of it. He basically told me the short version of things and left out a bunch of details. Wait a minute; is this guy in the picture with you her brother?" Parker asked. **

**Veronica's breathing hitched for a moment before she answered. "Yeah, that's Duncan."**

**Parker was quiet for a minute trying to let things sink in. "Wow, I should have known that Logan was leaving out a whole chapter on you." At Veronica's questioning look she continued, "When we first ran into Duncan a couple weeks ago, Logan mentioned he went to high school with you guys, I didn't know it was a big deal, and when I went to mention you guys Logan kind of freaked and had Dick whisk me away. Even when he finally told me about Lily's death and then Duncan and Lily, he didn't really say a whole lot about you other than you were involved and it wasn't his place to tell me about it."**

**Veronica hesitated for a few minutes before filling in a few of the blanks for her. "I assume Logan mentioned that Lily and I were best friends, since pretty much forever. The summer before we started high school Duncan and I started dating. We were together until about a week before Lily died our sophomore year. Duncan just dumped me without even telling me why. It turns out that back in the day, my mom and his dad had an affair. His mom knew about it, and when she found out who my mother was, she told Duncan that I was his sister. I didn't find out until over a year later, right before the end of our junior year. My dad had a paternity test done and I told Duncan he had nothing to worry about, we weren't related. We started dating again that summer and then he had to skip town with his and Meg's baby. Does that fill in some of the blanks for you?"**

"**It doesn't explain everything, but a lot. I don't think I even want to know anymore. It all sounds so awful, like it's from some soap opera or something." Parker said. **

"**I wish it were," Veronica told her. **

"**I just have one more question," Parker said. **

"**If Duncan and Logan were best friends, how did you end up with Logan?" **

"**You skip right past the easy questions don't you? It's kind of long and complicated. Can we shelf that question for another day?" Veronica asked wearily. Parker took that as her cue to leave. "Sure, no problem. I'm gonna head back down stairs to the pool if you guys want to come, if not I'll call you when the guys come in. We're supposed to go to the beach bar-b-que they're having around 6:30." **

"**Actually the pool sounds great. If I sit here in this room, I'll go crazy. Hey Mac, you gonna come to the pool with us?" Veronica called back to the bedroom where Mac had gone to check out the bathroom and plug in her laptop. **

"**Yeah sure!" she called back. **

**Veronica picked up the room phone and dialed Wallace next door.**

"_**Hello?**_**"**

"**Hey, we're gonna head downstairs to the pool with Parker, you wanna come?"**

"_**No doubt V. I'll be ready in 5 minutes**_**."**

"**Ok, just come next door when you're ready. I'm going to change, but Mac or Parker will let you in."**

"_**Aright, see ya in 5**_**."**

**Parker, Mac, Veronica, and Wallace were laid out in a line next to the pool. "Now this is the life." Wallace said. "Just layin out by the pool, not a care in the world, what kind of major can I have where I get to do this all day?" **

**Veronica laughed next to him, "Isn't that what you athletic types do when you get famous?" **

"**I need to get drafted quick then," he quipped. **

**Veronica rolled her eyes before standing up from her lounge chair. "I'm gonna go get a drink. Does anyone else want anything?" **

"**I'll take a ****Pina**** Colada." Parker called. **

"**Ooh, Strawberry Daiquiri for me please," Mac added. **

"**What about you Fennel? What's your poison?" Veronica called to him. **

"**Just a bottle of water for me V. I gotta keep in shape for the ladies." **

**Veronica rolled her eyes and decided to swim over to the bar to cool off.**

**She had just reached the bar when Duncan and Lily came out the back doors. Duncan spotted Parker across the pool and walked over to her lounge chair, not even noticing Mac and Wallace. Parker saw him coming and sat up as Lily climbed onto the lounger with her and Duncan sat on Veronica's vacated chair. **

"**The guys still down at the beach?" he asked. **

"**Yeah, they should be back in around 6 or so. I think the bar-b-que starts at 6:30." Parker said bouncing Lily in her lap. **

"**Well it's only 5 now, you mind if we hang out here with you for a while?" Duncan asked. **

"**No problem, you might want to find another chair though," she said with a smirk as she watched Veronica pick up their drinks from the bar. Duncan looked confused for a second. **

"**The chair you're in belongs to one pint size blonde with an attitude." Mac said from her spot beside the two. **

**Duncan looked down, noticing her for the first time, and did a double take, "Mac?" **

"**That's me," she said lifting her sunglasses and putting them on top of her head as she sat up. **

**Duncan opened and closed his mouth like a fish for a few seconds and was just about to ask about Veronica when he heard her voice. "Ok, so I asked for 1 Pina Colada and 2 Strawberry Daiquiris, but I think what I ended up with is 3 Strawberry Coladas," she said never looking up as she handed Mac and Parker their drinks. **

"**Hey Super-fly, did you get my water?" Wallace asked from Duncan's other side. He whipped around to look at him as Veronica tossed the water bottle over his head. When he turned back, he watched Veronica notice the little girl in Parker's lap. Parker gave her a huge grin and nodded in his direction. He stood up as she turned to face him. **

"**Hey Veronica."**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: ****A special thanks to IluvVM for being my own personal cheerleader urging me to get new chapters written and typed, and for all the reviews. 09erLoVer also suggested that I take this out of paragraph form cause it's easier to read, so I'm gonna try it that way, let me know what the rest of you guys think.**

**Disclaimer:**** Yet again the characters and places I'm using don't belong to me, but if they did, item ****numero ****uno**** on my list would be a hottie sandwich with Logan, Duncan, Casey, Dick, and Leo. They're just so pretty to look at…**

**Veronica had planned this moment out in her head a hundred times, but now that it was actually here, all she could do was stare at Duncan. They just stood staring at one another until the wind blew and Veronica shivered pulling them out of their haze as she searched for her towel and Duncan watched the goose bumps spread on her skin before finally realizing her towel was on the chair behind him. **

"**Sorry, here," he said spreading the towel out between his arms and walking towards her. **

**When he stood directly in front of her she looked at the towel for a minute and then back to his face before turning around and letting him wrap the towel around her. As soon as she felt his arms wrap around her shoulders, her breath hitched as she closed her eyes and leaned back into his warmth. Duncan sucked in a ragged breath and wrapped his arms tighter around her, resting his head on top of hers. **

**He laughed when he finally heard her speak, "This isn't a dream; you're real right? When I open my eyes, you're still going to be here?" **

**He turned her around to face him, never letting her go, before responding, "Why don't you open your eyes and see for yourself." **

**She slowly opened them and blinked for a minute to make sure he wouldn't disappear, then threw herself back into his arms. Duncan held onto her like she was a life preserver for several long minutes before Parker interrupted. **

"**Hey Duncan, we're gonna get in the pool with Lily, ok?" **

**He just nodded and pulled Veronica with him onto Mac's lounge chair that had just been vacated. He pulled his shirt off since it was now wet and leaned back pulling Veronica onto his chest. She snuggled into him listening to his heartbeat. **

"**God I love that sound. I never thought I'd hear it again." Duncan looked at her quizzically and she laughed. "Your heartbeat," she clarified. **

**Duncan laughed with her before placing a kiss on her forehead and pulling back to look at her. He just stared at her again for a moment before he found his voice again.**

"**God it's good to see you." He tucked a strand of her wet hair back behind her ear, and let his hand linger on her cheek. "Do you have any idea how much I've missed you?" **

**Veronica laughed and leaned into his hand, "Yeah, I've got a pretty good idea." **

**He pulled her back into his arms and she settled her head over his heart again. **

"**How did you know I was here? I know Logan didn't tell you…Did Parker tell you? Cause I thought Logan said you hadn't really talked since they started dating." He felt her stiffen and felt like a bucket of ice water had suddenly been poured on him. "Veronica, how did you know I was here?" **

**She sat up and looked him in the eye before speaking. "I did an internship at the FBI this summer, and before you start freaking out, let me finish. My handler showed me this case they were working on dealing with your father and Dick Sr. The building you're living in, they think it's some kind of fraud scheme. They had a surveillance photo of you leaving the building, but I wasn't totally sure it was you until Mac called to ask me if Logan and I had a love child. Don't ask, I'll tell you about it later. So she has me buy the magazine so I can see the picture. It was a picture of Logan, Parker, and Lily. You weren't actually in it for me to see your face, but your arm was. I recognized your watch. It's the one I gave you for your 18****th**** birthday." **

**She was fingering the watch as she spoke. Duncan watched her play with it before linking their hands together to make her stop fidgeting. **

"**I know, that's why I wear it. When I left, it was pretty much all I had left of us, of you," he said. **

**His thumb caressed the side of her face and she turned her head to look at him. She watched him entranced, as he seemed to try and memorize her face, finally settling on her lips. Knowing it would drive him crazy she sucked her bottom lip in between her teeth for a few seconds, then licked her lips. He watched every movement and was finally leaning in to kiss her…**

"**Ronnie? What the hell are you doing here?" Dick asked as he and Logan came back up from the beach. **

**Veronica shifted away from Duncan as they both sat up. She studied the ground for a moment before looking up and acknowledging the pair. **

"**Hey Dick…Logan…" Logan looked at Duncan before returning his gaze to her, **

"**What are you doing here Ronnie? How did you even know we were here? Last you knew we were still planning to tour South America."**

**She picked her towel back up and wrapped it around herself now that Dick was gawking at her, and Duncan wrapped his arm back around her after casting a glare in Dick's direction. **

"**You might be harder to find if the paparazzi didn't follow you to the bathroom boys. Besides, Wallace, Mac, and I earned ourselves a break before school starts. We've been slaving away all summer while you guys had all the fun. Speaking of which, can I borrow you for a minute Logan?" She asked, standing up, grabbing his arm, and pulling him behind her to the other side of the pool.**

"**When were you planning on telling me he was here Logan?" she asked with an angry glint in her eyes. Logan avoided looking her in the eyes, and she had her answer, "You weren't going to tell me, were you." It was a statement more than a question. "God! and you wondered why we had trust issues!" she yelled throwing her hands up in the air. She was so angry she almost missed him mumbling something under his breath. "What was that? What did you say?"**

"**I said I was just trying to protect you!" Logan yelled. **

**Veronica softened a little. "Logan, we're not together anymore, you don't have to save me from the world." **

"**I know, but that's just always been my role since Lily, ya know. It's like I couldn't save her so I had to latch on to you." Logan said shuffling his feet. **

"**I know, and I'll always love you for it, but you've got to let me make my own decisions. We may be epic, but I'm tired of always fighting Logan, I'm sorry, but I want the Fairy Tale, even if it's slightly skewed." Logan pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead. **

"**I know, go be happy, just be careful, this Fairy Tale of yours has an expiration date on it." He joked. **

**Veronica laughed as she pulled away, "Maybe not, I'm working on the Happily Ever After part." She said evasively as she walked back around the pool to where Duncan and Parker were staring at them.**

"**Hey guys, I hate to bust up this touching moment, but I'm starving." Dick announced. **

**Mac laughed before her expression turned serious, "Uh, Veronica… I hate you for making me say this, but I agree with Dick." Her stomach rumbled as if on queue. **

**Parker and Duncan laughed as Wallace chimed in, "Seriously V, the last time we ate was at like 8 this morning, and it was air plane food." Veronica joined in the laughter. **

"**Ok, the masses have spoken." Logan stated. "Everyone return to yours rooms to change and be back down stairs in…" he looked at the non-existent watch on his arm, "…30 minutes." When no one appeared to move, he clapped his hands together, "Let's go people, move!" **

**Mac and Wallace jumped to attention and saluted Logan before making a dash for the elevator, shortly followed by Dick and Parker. Duncan just shook his head and put Lily on his hip as he followed the rest of the gang to their rooms, his hand linked with Veronica's and Logan bringing up the rear.**

**True to Logan's word, they all met 30 minutes later in the lobby. They were just about to walk outside to the seating area when Logan heard someone call his name.**

"**Hey Echolls!" The group stopped and turned to see 4 people they hadn't seen in a little over a year headed their way. **

"**Casey? Luke? What are you guys doing in Australia?" **

**Casey laughed before answering, "Well, we were all chilling at home for the summer when Gia mentioned she saw you and Dick on the front page of the paper, chilling here, so we just decided to pack our bags and hang out here for the last two weeks of vacation. You do remember Troy and Gia right?"**

**Logan shot Troy a glare and nodded to Gia, "Yeah, I remember. I guess everyone's hunting me down from that picture. Uh, I think you guys know everybody here except the lovely blonde to my left is my girlfriend Parker, and the mess of pigtails on Veronica's hip over there is Duncan's daughter Lily." **

**Casey had been staring at Parker, but at the mention of Duncan looked up. He came around the group of friends and gave Duncan a man hug. **

"**Man, it's good to see you. It's been way too long. You just bailed on us at New Years. Have you been hiding out here the whole time?"**

"**Pretty much; Meg's parents wanted to put Lily up for adoption and not let me see her, so I took her and skipped town. We went down to Mexico, caught a plane here, and the rest is history." Duncan told him. **

"**Man that's messed up." Casey replied. **

**Veronica leaned up to Duncan's ear, "That reminds me, I have something to tell you later." **

**Duncan gave her a worried look wondering if it had anything to do with her and Logan having a love child like she had mentioned earlier. She noticed the look on his face and turned him to look back at her. **

"**I promise, it's good news, nothing bad, and nothing to do with Logan." She told him pointedly. He just smiled at her sheepishly and kissed her forehead. She noticed Troy headed in her direction and in an effort to avoid him, announced they needed to hurry up and get in line if they wanted any food.**

**Dinner went by relatively uneventful with the exception of the flirtatious glances Casey and Parker were sending each other over the table. From the look on Logan's face, Duncan and Veronica weren't the only ones that noticed either. They shared a concerned look before Veronica added having a heart to heart with Parker to her mental list of things to do. Parker, Gia, Veronica, and Mac made plans to go shopping at the open-air market the next day while the guys went wind-surfing and para-sailing, and then they all headed their separate ways for the night.**

**Duncan followed Veronica and Mac to their room so they could have their talk. Lily had already passed out in Duncan's arms so he set her down on the bed since Mac had agreed to watch her and followed Veronica back to the couch in the living room.**

**He sat down and pulled Veronica into his arms. She fiddled with his watch again while trying to figure out how to bring up the fact that she'd gone to see Meg's dad behind his back. Duncan watched her for a few minutes before intertwining his fingers with hers. **

"**Whatever it is, you know you can tell me right?" Duncan whispered in her ear. Veronica smiled up at him before giving him a quick chaste kiss on the lips.**

"**Ok, here it goes…After I figured out you were here, I started missing you, and wishing you were back home with me, so I kind of went to talk to Meg's mom." She stopped for a moment and looked up at Duncan to gauge his reaction. **

**He looked at her quizzically, "What do you mean? What did you talk to her about?" **

**She started playing with his watch again with the hand that wasn't already wrapped in his. "I asked her if I could track you down and get you to bring Lily home, would she drop the charges on you and give you custody." **

"**What did she say?" Duncan asked, starting to jiggle his leg nervously.**

**Veronica got up, walked across the room to her messenger bag on the table, and pulled out an envelope, "See for yourself," she said handing it to him. He stared at her for a long moment before finally taking it from her hand and pulling out the papers inside.**

"**I gave a copy to Clarence and your dad to look over. They said they'd let me know by Monday night if it looked airtight." She explained while he looked them over. **

"**So you not only went to see Meg's mom, but my dad too?" Veronica swallowed the lump in her throat thinking he was upset, "Just so I could come home?" he finished, looking up at her with unshed tears swimming in his eyes. **

**Veronica straddled his lap on the couch and cupped his face in her hands so he couldn't look away, "Don't you know by now that I'd do anything for you?" Duncan stared into her eyes for a moment before crushing his lips to hers. When air became a necessity, they broke apart panting, foreheads still touching.**

"**God I've missed you Veronica, missed this, missed us," he confessed. **

"**Me too," she confessed, still trying to catch her breath. **

**Duncan swung around so he was stretched back out on the couch, with Veronica on top of him. She nestled her face in the crook of his neck and lay there, just glad to be together for a few minutes. She felt his breathing start to even out and lifted her head to watch him. She ran her hand along the beard that he had grown. It was longer than he had grown it out last time. She'd have to bug him about cutting it shorter or shaving it off all together. She did have to admit, it definitely made him look older, and it was kind of sexy. Maybe she'd just ask him to cut it back to the length it was before.**

"**Hey Duncan…" **

"**Hmm, what is it Ronnie?" he asked, half asleep already. **

"**I love you," she whispered kissing both his eyes and then his nose. **

"**Love you too Ronnie," he said, wrapping her tighter in his arms. She snuggled back into his chest and was asleep in no time.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Sunday-At the hotel…**

**Veronica woke the next morning to something pulling on her foot. She and Duncan had both shifted onto their sides during the night, now he was behind her, and her foot was dangling off the edge of the couch. She turned slightly to glance at Duncan, but saw he was still asleep. She was just about to put her head back down, when she felt the tug again and looked down to her feet. Lily was standing at the end of the couch staring at her.**

"**Toons Ronnie," the little girl said, her blonde hair sticking out everywhere from her pigtails coming loose during the night.**

**Veronica smiled, trying to maneuver out from under Duncan's arm without waking him up. She finally sat up, pulled the remote off the table in front of her, and turned the TV on. She glanced behind her to make sure it wasn't loud enough to wake him up, then picked Lily up and set her on the couch with her father while she got up to make coffee. She was just pulling some mugs out of the cupboard when Mac wandered into the living room in some pajama pants and a t-shirt. Veronica poured them both a cup and handed one to her as she stretched her arms and yawned.**

"**Man, I don't think I've gotten that good a night sleep in years." She said taking the coffee from her hand.**

"**You're telling me. One would think that the couch would be one of the most UNcomfortable places to sleep, but not last night buddy. I slept like a baby."**

**Mac smirked at her over her coffee mug, "And I'm sure it had nothing to do with who was sleeping on the couch **_**with **_**you."**

**Veronica blushed as she looked over to the couch and saw that Lily had taken her spot and was now cuddled into Duncan's arms. The phone chose then to ring and Duncan sat up on the couch, startled, as Veronica went to answer it.**

"**Hello?"**

"**Hey V, Parker just called and said the rest of them are going down stairs for breakfast, I guess they have some kind of buffet or something. You coming with, or are you and Mac gonna fend for yourselves?"**

"**Hey Wallace, we're all up, just let me get changed and we'll be right down."**

"**ALL of ya huh? Do I even want to know?"**

**Veronica blushed, "Nothing like that. You and your dirty mind. No more hanging out with Logan for you."**

**Wallace laughed, "Aright V, I'll see ya downstairs in a few."**

"**Ok, heaven forbid you miss an extra slice of bacon."**

"**Hey, I'm a growin boy; I need all the bacon I can get."**

"**Just go, we'll see you in a few."**

**Veronica hung up the phone and brought Duncan a cup of coffee. "I'm gonna go get changed real quick. Wallace said everyone's meeting downstairs at the buffet for breakfast before we go our separate ways. I don't have any other pants for you to wear, but I still have one of your old shirts and a pair of your boxers that I brought with me if you want to change."**

**Duncan laughed as he took the mug from her, "Now why on earth would you have brought my underwear with you?" he asked, eyebrows raised in evident interest.**

"**I wear the shirt and boxers to sleep in some times Mr. Smarty pants. Keep making fun of me though and I'll let you go down there in the same clothes you were wearing last night and let the masses pick you apart."**

**Mac laughed and shook her head on her way past him to the bedroom. "If I were you, I'd take the clothes from V and try to catch Wallace before he leaves for breakfast so you can get a shower. Otherwise, you'll have to wait til both of us are through." She and Veronica shared a high-five as Duncan took the clothes from Veronica and went next door.**

"**You go ahead and take the shower Mac, I'm gonna give Miss Lily here a bath."**

**Later that day, Open air market…**

**It was a beautiful day, the girls were walking through the booths and shops set up along the walkway. Parker had a hold of Lily and they had been shopping for about an hour when Gia stopped at a booth next to Veronica, obviously wanting to talk.**

"**Listen Veronica, about what happened…"**

"**Don't worry about it Gia. It wasn't your fault, you didn't know." she interrupted.**

"**I know, it's just, I keep feeling like there's something I could have said, or done, to make things turn out different." She stopped talking for a moment looking at some bracelets that were laid out on a table, then turned back to Veronica. "I know Mac and I never really talked or hung out or anything back in high school, but she won't even look at me let alone talk to me now. Dick won't talk to me either. I saw him keep giving me these weird looks last night, but I tried to just say hi to him and he pretended like I wasn't even there. I just don't know how to make things right." She rambled, looking at her hands.**

"**Just give them some time. I think Mac ended up with more scars than the rest of us. Cassidy was her first real boyfriend, first love, pretty much her first everything. What he did really messed her up. It's taken a long time for her to heal." She sighed, not knowing quite what to say about Dick. "As for Dick, I'm not sure exactly what to tell you. I know he blames your dad for molesting Cassidy, but he blames himself for a lot too; for always picking on him, and teasing him, making him feel like he wasn't good enough. I'll try to talk to both of them; just don't expect any friendships to blossom over night."**

**Veronica looked up when Gia grabbed her arm, "Thanks Veronica."**

**She just laughed trying to lighten the mood, "That's what I'm here for."**

"**I'm serious, I wouldn't blame you, any of you really, if you never wanted to talk to me again, but here you are listening to all my problems and trying to help me anyways. It means a lot. I'm glad I actually listened to Troy for once; just don't tell him I said that."**

"**Troy?"**

"**Yeah, we met at the beginning of the spring semester at UCLA and we've been together ever since. He noticed I was kind of uncomfortable last night and told me I should try to talk to you today, said you were good at giving people second chances. I wasn't really sure how he knew you or anything, but just decided I would never know if I didn't try, so here I am. How _do_ you know Troy?"**

"**Ah, Troy…He went to Neptune for a while our junior year and we dated, he was my date for homecoming in fact. One night he, Logan, and Luke went down to TJ. Luke was picking up steroids for some guy that owned a gym. Troy had a bunch of problems from before with drugs and stuff, I guess he decided to jack Luke's drugs. I figured it all out and saved Luke's ass, got the dealer caught, and Troy left Neptune. I guess he got straightened out. The next time I saw him was at Hearst our senior year when Wallace and I went for an incoming freshman weekend. There was a party the first night we were there and this girl accused Troy of raping her. He called me from jail and begged me to help him, so as usual I did Lamb's job, proved it wasn't him, and we went our separate ways. Just be careful with him Gia. I thought I knew him too, and I was wrong."**

"**Wow, I can definitely see why Dick used to say you had trust issues with guys."**

**Veronica laughed, "Yeah, they always try to lie, but I catch em in the end."**

"**Well, in Troy's case I'm glad you gave him a second chance, otherwise I wouldn't have half the great boyfriend I do today."**

**They shopped for a little while longer and sat down at an outdoor café around 11:30 to rest their feet and have lunch. They were getting ready to leave when Gia said she was going to use the bathroom and Mac announced she was going to take Lily too and clean her up. Veronica figured this was as good a time as any to talk to Parker.**

"**Hey Parker, can I ask you something?"**

"**Sure Veronica, what's up?"**

"**I know you're here with Logan, and you have been all summer, and I'm not trying to accuse you of anything, but…is there something going on between you and Casey?"**

"**I know you're just trying to look out for Logan, but it's not really any of your business."**

"**I know, and that's fine, but if there is something going on, you need to end it with one of them because they're friends. They have been since middle school, but that won't matter to Logan if he finds out you two went behind his back. We did it to Duncan once upon a time back in high school and they didn't talk for months. They went from being best friends to not even acknowledging the other one existed. Duncan and I saw the looks Logan was giving him last night when he saw the two of you staring at each other."**

**Veronica was just about to get up when Parker started talking. "We met during winter break, before Logan and I were even together. Casey and Troy were staying at the ski resort where my family goes skiing all the time. We just sat up talking for hours one night and he invited me to the New Year's party the resort was having. We ended up back in his room, and I wanted to prove to myself, that I was over the rape and everything. We slept together, he passed out afterward, and I felt like some cheap hooker, so I left and went home. He tried to call me the next day, but I was afraid all he wanted me for was the sex, so I never called him back. I hadn't even really thought about him since Logan and I started dating, but then when I saw him yesterday, it was just like, something shifted, and I couldn't _not_ look at him."**

"**Have you talked to him?"**

"**No, but I feel so guilty Veronica. Logan has been so good to me. We haven't even had sex because he wants to make sure it's perfect, that I'm not rushed, that I'm really ready for it. It would kill him if he knew I slept with Casey 3 months before we even started dating."**

**Veronica noticed Mac and Gia coming back from the bathroom. They weren't talking, but Mac hadn't killed her either, so she took that as a good sign.**

"**Listen, if you're afraid of how he'll react, I'll be there when you tell him, and it's no problem if you need a place to stay. I can make Wallace share and you can room with Mac."**

"**Are you ladies ready to hit the rest of these shops?" Gia called out from behind Parker.**

"**Yeah, let's get moving, maybe if we finish up here we can head down to the beach and catch the guys making fools of themselves." Parker called over her shoulder standing up and wiping her face with her napkin. She turned back to face Veronica, "I'll think about it ok?"**

**Veronica just nodded and went to help Mac put Lily's shoe back on. **

"**Hey Veronica?" Parker called back out.**

"**Yeah?"**

"**Thanks."**

**Veronica just smiled, "Any time."**

**Meanwhile, Over at the beach…**

**The guys had gone wind-surfing that morning with the exception of Luke who had made some excuse and taken off. He showed up just has the guys were sitting down at an outdoor restaurant for lunch, and grabbed 3 extra chairs. **

"**Luke man, what the hell happened to you this morning? You missed some killer surf." Dick said.**

"**Sorry guys. I met this hot chick and her friends before I went up to my room last night and we made plans to go snorkeling this morning."**

"**Dude, and you didn't invite me…"**

"**Sorry man. Get this though, this one chick went to Neptune so I invited the two of them to meet us here for lunch."**

"**So who is this chick?"**

"**She was a grade behind us, her name's Hannah something…"**

**Logan's head shot up, "Hannah Griffiths?"**

"**Logan?" He heard behind him.**

**He turned around and low and behold, there was none other than his ex-girlfriend. She looked shocked to see him for a moment before another emotion slipped on to her face, anger.**

**Casey and Dick watched the exchange**

"**I take it you two know each other…" Casey hedged.**

**Wallace laughed from his seat and the other guys all turned to stare at him. "What? You mean I actually know something about Logan that the rest of you don't…" When no one said anything, he looked at Hannah, still glaring at an obviously shocked Logan. "They used to date."**

**Dick stared at Hannah for a minute, "That's right, she's the chick from the winter carnival. I didn't know there was anything more to that." **

"**There wasn't much," she said, taking the empty seat next to Luke. "He got what he wanted and dumped me, and my dad sent me to go to boarding school on the east coast." **

**Her friend took the seat next to her and looked between the two of them for a few minutes. "This is **_**that**_** guy?" she finally asked.**

"**Yeah."**

**It didn't appear Logan was going to say anything as he sank farther in his chair, so Wallace spoke up. "There's more to it than ya'll think. Did you ever tell her why man?" he asked Logan.**

**Hannah looked at Wallace, and then back to Logan. "What's he talking about?"**

**He gave Wallace a weary look before meeting Hannah's gaze. "It's not exactly something I want to talk about in front of everyone ok?"**

"**Why don't you guys go for a walk or something man, we'll order you guys something to eat and it'll be here by the time you get back." Duncan said.**

"**Sure, why not..." Logan said sarcastically, standing to leave.**

**Hannah handed her purse to her friend and asked her to order a burger for her before turning to follow Logan. He didn't say anything until they got to a bench on the other side of the street. He sat down and Hannah followed suit, waiting for his explanation.**

"**I didn't break up with you just because I got what I wanted, if anything, it was exactly the opposite. I wanted to just be able to use you to get to your father, but the more time I spent with you, the more I liked you. After we had sex, I knew I was in way over my head. I was falling in love with you, and I wasn't ready for that, so I did what I always do, I ditched and ran. The fact that your dad was testifying against me and I was being charged with murder was just chunk change."**

**He stared at his hands in his lap while he talked, and didn't dare look up until he was done. Hannah seemed to be debating with herself whether or not she wanted to believe him.**

"**Look, if I could go back and change things, fix it, I would, but I can't. I _am_ sorry."**

**She was quiet for another minute. Logan didn't think she was going to say anything and got up to leave.**

"**At least you weren't found guilty right?" Hannah asked.**

**He stopped and turned around, "No. I wasn't."**

"**Ok then. Let's just get back in and eat, I'm starving." **

**She gave him a small smile and he stared at her trying to figure out what had just happened. She had walked past him and turned around when he didn't follow her.**

"**Are you coming back in or not?"**

**Logan just smiled and looked down at his feet before following after her. When they got back inside, as promised, their food was waiting for them. Everyone stopped talking as they sat back down and shared a small smile across the table. Everyone went back to eating and no one failed to notice the two of them stealing glances at one another when they thought the other one wasn't looking. Realizing that Hannah probably didn't know most of the other guys, he introduced her to all of them when they finished eating and invited her and her friends to dinner with them that night.**

**Duncan leaned over and whispered to Wallace, "Well, dinner will certainly be interesting tonight."**

**Wallace laughed and shook his head in agreement, "That man has no idea what he's getting himself into."**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:**** Thank you to everyone who has reviewed. Also, a special hello to all the lurkers out there. Thanks for reading. It may take me a few days between parts from now on since I have to go back to work today. Vacations end all too fast. I promise I'll try to keep updates coming at least once a week. Thanks again, and happy reading!**

**Disclaimer:**** I still wish some small part of it belonged to me, but sadly, it does not…**

**Sunday night - Dinner at the hotel…**

**Everyone met downstairs at the hotel for dinner around 7. Hannah had agreed to come to dinner, but her other two friends decided against it, so there were 12 adults plus Lily. Logan had made sure to reserve 2 large tables, just in case, and the group opted to push the two tables together instead of sitting at separate tables.**

**Lily sat at the end of the table, in her highchair, next to Duncan and Veronica. Next to them sat Logan and Parker, with Mac and Dick on the other side of them. On Lily's other side sat Wallace. Next to him were Gia and Troy; and on Troy's other side were Hannah, Casey, and Luke.**

**Dinner was nothing short of interesting, that was for sure. Wallace had warned Veronica and Mac that Hannah was coming, just incase there was a cat fight between her and Parker, since he didn't know about Parker and Casey. Logan simply introduced her to the girls as an old friend from high school, which Parker didn't question. **

**Everyone was generally making small talk as they ate, but Veronica noticed the glances across the table between Logan and Hannah, and Parker and Casey. She even noticed that Mac and Dick were sitting next to one another, and neither of them were dead yet. She was smiling to herself when Duncan noticed and whispered in her ear.**

"**And just what, may I ask, has you grinning like an idiot?"**

**She turned and smiled at him conspiratorially, "I know you noticed the looks between Parker and Casey last night…"**

"**And…"**

"**And, if you'd let me finish…" she administered playfully, "I talked to Parker today and got the scoop. I won't give you all the details, because that would violate girl talk rule #1, but suffice to say, this isn't the first time they've met, AND she may still have feelings for him."**

**He gave her an odd look. "And she's Logan's girlfriend, whom he really likes. This news makes you happy how?"**

**Veronica sighed and rolled her eyes. "I guess I have to explain everything to you huh? Well, if you haven't noticed, which is weird since you're the one who spent all day with them, Parker and Casey aren't the only ones sharing steamy looks, Logan and Hannah seem to be in a world of their own now too."**

**Duncan just nodded his head as if it was old news. "Yeah, things were tense at lunch, but they went outside and had a talk; when they came back, they were like that."**

**She smacked his shoulder lightly, "And you're just telling me now?"**

**He laughed and kissed her hand with a twinkle in his eye, "I'm sorry, was I supposed to call you so we could compare notes? You didn't tell me we were on a stakeout."**

**Veronica was just about to respond when Wallace nudged her foot under the table to get her attention.**

"**Hey V, what's up with all the wandering eyes tonight?"**

**She just laughed, "Welcome to the conversation my friend."**

**Her cell phone chose then to ring, cutting off anything else she was about to say. She checked the caller ID figuring it might be her dad checking in, but she didn't recognize the number. **

"**Hello?"**

"_**Did I catch you at a bad time Miss Mars**_**?" she heard. She recognized the voice immediately, and motioned to Duncan she was going to go outside.**

"**Not at all Clarence, I just wasn't expecting to hear from you so soon."**

"_**What can I say Miss Mars, you do have a certain way of lighting a fire… Your father also called to alert Mr. Kane that the charges against Duncan had been dropped**_**."**

"**Oh I see, when he called, you realized I wasn't giving you a load of crap."**

"_**Something like that. Tell Duncan that it's a go. I've set up an appointment for tomorrow morning with an attorney for Kane Pacific at 10am in Sydney. He just needs to sign the papers in front of the attorney so he can witness and notarize them, then they'll be overnighted back to us**_**."**

"**What makes you think I'm with Duncan? That I've even found him?"**

"_**I know how you operate Miss Mars. You never would have started any of this if you didn't know where he was. Besides, I'm looking at a GPS location on you in Mollymook, Australia. You wouldn't be there if you weren't with him. I assume I can trust you'll pass the information on to him?**_**"**

"**Yeah, no problem. What happens once you get the paperwork back?"**

"_**The lawyers file it with the court. I'll call again when everything is done and send a packet with his Passport. Then it will be up to him, he'll be free to return as soon as he wants; just tell him to call and I'll send the company jet**_**."**

"**Ok, No problem, and… thanks Clarence."**

"_**I'll be in touch Miss Mars,**_**" with that he hung up.**

**Veronica stared at the phone in her hand for a moment, letting it all sink in, then headed back to the table. The smile on her face could have lit up the room as she walked back to her seat. Duncan, Logan, Parker, Mac and Dick all seemed to notice, and stopped talking, causing the other 6 to turn and stare at her as well. When she reached her seat, Duncan and Logan were both giving her quizzical looks.**

"**Did you win the lottery?" Logan joked.**

**She ignored him, and was still smiling as she leaned down to whisper in Duncan's ear, "As of tomorrow morning, you're a free man." **

**A look of shock crossed his face as she sat down and he stared into her eyes. "I thought you said they wouldn't know until tomorrow?"**

"**Evidently dad called and lit a fire. You have to be at the lawyer's office in Sydney at 10 tomorrow, and then as soon as you sign the papers, you'll be free."**

**Duncan just stared at her, wide-eyed, for a moment, then pulled her into a searing, passionate kiss. Veronica had almost forgotten where they were and how many people were watching until Logan rat-tailed her with his napkin. **

**She pulled away abruptly, "Ow! What?" **

**Logan looked annoyed, "Would you two care to tell the rest of us what the hell is going on?"**

**Duncan smiled at Veronica and tightened his arm around her waist. She smiled back and nodded, indicating it was his story to tell. He kissed her one more time before turning to everyone at the table.**

"**It looks like thanks to the lovely and talented Veronica Mars, come 10am tomorrow morning, I'll be a free man."**

"**What the hell are you talking about?" Logan asked, obviously still confused.**

"**Veronica went and talked to Mrs. Manning. She agreed to give me full custody of Lily and drop all the charges if I let her see her at least once a week. She gave a copy of the papers to my Dad, he had the attorneys go over it, and CW just called to give it the green light. I meet the lawyer in the morning, sign the papers, send them back, they file them with the judge and I'm free to go home."**

**You could see a new light sparkle in his eyes and choruses of congratulations could be heard around the table, but Logan was still sulking in his seat. He just stared at what was left of his food, pushing it around on his plate. He finally fixed Duncan and Veronica with a glare.**

"**Were you even gonna tell me if I hadn't asked, or were you just gonna wait to spring it on me when you hopped on the plane?"**

**Duncan looked at him, completely confused, "What the hell do you mean? I just told you 10 seconds after I found out. Sorry it took so long for me to process it," he bit back sarcastically.**

**Logan didn't say anything to him, but glared angrily at Veronica. "What was that you yelled at me about yesterday? Oh that's right, withholding information," he snarled. "And what did you say when I asked why you were here? Never mind, I remember, you just wanted a vacation. You lied to me Veronica! You of all people should know better."**

**Veronica blanched. Gia noticed the mounting tension and tried to intervene, "Oh chill out Logan. It wasn't a blatant lie meant to hurt you. She probably didn't want to say anything in case it didn't happen. Then she would have gotten everyone's hopes up for nothing. Besides, it's not like you've never told a lie." **

**Casey laughed. "They always fight, some things just never change. If it wouldn't have been this, whey would find something else." He fell silent as Logan turned to glare at him.**

"**I don't want to hear it from **_**you**_** Casey! I've seen the way you've been staring at Parker."**

**The grin left his face, "Oh, you mean the same way **_**you've**_** been staring at Hannah all day?"**

**Hannah and Parker both sat straight up in their seats and casted odd glances at one another. Duncan had watched all this from his seat, but stood abruptly, knocking over his chair.**

"**Enough! You all are acting like a bunch of 5 year olds playing the blame game. I thought you would be happy I was coming home Logan, you're supposed to be my best friend." **

**Lily started to cry and the fire seemed to leave Logan's eyes. He looked at her guiltily as Veronica picked her up to take her outside. Logan watched her go, glaring at him as she left, before turning back to Duncan. **

"**I'm sorry man. I guess I just got pissed cause I didn't know first." Duncan just nodded and picked his chair up so he could sit back down, as Dick decided to chime in from the other end of the table.**

"**Dude, Casey was right man. All you and Ronnie know how to do is fight or make out, just go kiss her and the balance will be reset."**

**Before Logan could say anything, Mac smacked him upside the head, "Yeah, cause that worked so well the last time you tried it."**

**Logan's words died on his lips as he and Duncan started laughing.**

"**What?" Dick asked, rubbing his head and glancing from Mac, back down to Logan and Duncan.**

"**Dude, did you try to kiss Mac?" Luke asked.**

**Veronica was just coming back inside with Lily, but stopped dead in her tracks after hearing that, "**_**What**_**?"**

**Although it was an odd occurrence, Dick blushed, "It wasn't on purpose, he stammered. "I had just spent the last week with my dad and it had me in a really weird place. I think I was channeling Beav or something."**

**He seemed to realize what he said as soon as it left his mouth and turned to stare at Mac as her face went slack and she pushed away from the table. Veronica handed Lily back to Duncan, and was about to go after her, but Dick stood up in front of her.**

"**No, it was my fault, I'll go find her."**

**She glared at him, "You better fix this Richard," she finally relented.**

**He knew he was in trouble if she was using his god given first name. Lily started to get restless in Duncan's arms, so he checked his watch, it was almost 9pm.**

"**Wow, I didn't realize it was so late. I need to get her put to bed. Sorry I have to run."**

"**Don't worry about it. I'll see you guys in the morning. You're gonna come get me before you leave right?" Veronica asked, turning back to give him a hug.**

**He handed Lily to Logan so he could wrap both arms around her, and squeezed her to him. "You bet I will," he said, giving her a light kiss. "Be ready to go about 7 ok?"**

"**Ok, I'll be ready."**

**Duncan was about to let go and take Lily back, but Veronica pulled him back and crushed her lips to his. I was a short kiss, but full of passion. Logan looked away, and when she stepped back, Duncan just stared at her.**

**She laughed, "I just thought I'd give you something to last til tomorrow."**

"**I guess that will have to do for now," he whispered in her ear. She smiled, and he was about to say something else when Gia interrupted.**

"**You'll see her in the morning Romeo. Just go before you make the rest of us sick."**

"**At least you've got somebody," Luke said to Gia. "Seriously dude, she's right. You know it's bad when you can even make another couple sick."**

**Logan just laughed at the awkward glance Duncan gave Veronica before giving her a kiss on the forehead and turning to take Lily. Lily held her arms out to hug Veronica, and Veronica kissed both of them goodbye before they left.**

**Everyone else picked up their things and headed towards the elevators in an awkward silence. Veronica pulled out her cell and tried to call Mac on her way to make sure she was ok, but it went straight to voicemail, so she just left a message saying she'd be in their room. Just as everyone was about to pile into the elevator, Mac and Dick walked back in from the pool area. It was obvious Mac had been crying, and Dick didn't look much better, but had a comforting arm around her shoulders. Logan and Veronica both turned to give each other a 'What the hell?' look, but neither said anything. Everyone was silent and Veronica, Wallace, Casey, Luke, and Hannah got out on the 2****nd**** floor. Surprised not to see Mac get off the elevator with them, Veronica turned back around. **

**Mac seemed to anticipate her question, "We're going to finish our talk, and then I'll be back down. I'll be fine, don't worry."**

**Veronica just nodded, shared a concerned look with Wallace, and gave Dick a look of warning before the doors closed.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: A big huge thank you to everyone for reviewing. The responses to the last chapter were great. I hope you all like this one just as much. Please review, it really does mean a lot.**

**Wallace, Casey, and Luke had all gone to Luke's room to play video games, and Veronica was about to open the door to her room when Hannah's voice stopped her.**

"**Hey Veronica, can I ask you a question?"**

**Veronica swung the door open and motioned for her to follow her into the room. Hannah looked around nervously for a minute finally sitting on the couch.**

"**Go ahead, shoot."**

"**This is probably a stupid question, and you'll probably think I'm crazy for asking, I'm not even sure why I'm asking…"**

**Veronica already had a good idea what was going on so decided to cut to the chase, "Does this have something to do with Logan?" she interrupted.**

**Hannah blushed, "Is it that obvious?"**

**Veronica just smiled and sat down next to her, "I've just been there, trust me, I know exactly what you're thinking."**

**Hannah sighed and finally looked Veronica in the eye, "I'm crazy though right? He never said anything about it, but I kind of figured from what Casey said at dinner that he and Parker are dating."**

**Veronica winced slightly and shook her head, "They are, for the moment anyway."**

**Hannah gave her a confused look, "What do you mean, did they have a fight or something?"**

**Veronica laughed lightly, "They've had several fights since they got together, and mostly about me. Parker can't stand that Logan still cares about me even though we're not together anymore. They got in a particularly nasty fight right before the summer started and Logan only brought her here in an attempt to patch things up. I think things may have even been starting to get better between them, but then I showed up, and so did Casey."**

"**What does Casey have to do with it? Did they use to date or something?"**

"**He and Parker had a fling over winter break. They never really talked about what would happen when break was over, now that they've seen each other again, they're playing the what if game."**

"**So then you think that Parker might break up with Logan and go back to Casey?" Hannah asked, with a slightly hopeful smile.**

**Veronica smirked, "If he doesn't break up with her first and come chasing after you. Casey wasn't the only one to notice the looks between you two. Duncan, Wallace, and I all noticed too.**

**Hannah blushed and ducked her head, staring at her hands in her lap. "I'm not sure what it is about him, I mean, I should hate him for using me, ya know… He just up and dumped me out of the blue with no real reason, and then admitted to my face that his plan was indeed to use me against my father. How can I possibly still have feeling for him after all that?"**

**Veronica let out a short bitter laugh, "If only you knew… when Duncan and I dated the first time, we went from dating and kissing on Friday, to him completely ignoring the fact that I existed on Monday. He never gave me a reason. I turns out he had a really good one though, and he was hurting as much as I was. He was trying to do the macho thing and protect me I guess."**

"**Yeah, but did he use you just to get to your father?"**

"**No, but Logan and I have forgiven each other for much worse. He told me once in high school that we were epic, our love spanning years and continents, causing bloodshed. I think he was right. We'll always love each other, but we both realize that we only hurt each other. It seemed like every time we turned around one of us was fighting for forgiveness from the other." **

**Veronica looked up and Hannah raised her eyebrows, waiting expectantly for her to continue; she sighed and rolled her eyes, "Ok, let's see, where to begin… You know about my dad's fall from grace after Lily's murder right?" Hannah nodded, "Well, when my dad accused Jake Kane, Logan asked me to talk some sense into him, when I said I was going to stick by my dad, he pretty much made me a social pariah. First there was Shelly's party; Logan had gotten some GHB in Tijuana that he gave to Dick, who tried to use it to drug Madison, who even though she hated me-didn't know what was in her cup when she gave it to me…long story short, I was raped that night." **

**She stopped for a minute and looked up before continuing, "Logan didn't know that it was rape, and started spreading rumors about me sleeping around with a bunch of guys. After we started talking again and eventually dating, I forgave him, but then gave the sheriff reason to arrest him for Lily's murder, when it really should have been his dad. I was the one, who put him there, and he didn't know it, he used his one phone call to call me. Once his dad was arrested, he forgave me, but he was in a depression and I guess I just didn't want to deal. Duncan had broken up with his girlfriend and I broke up with Logan. Duncan and I got back together that summer. Logan was pissed, started sleeping with Dick's step mom, Kendall, then you came along and things were good for a while. After you left, he went back to sleeping with Kendall, but pretty much just to spite me sleeping with Duncan. When Duncan had to leave, we slowly started talking again, and finally got back together right after graduation. Logan broke things off with me that time because I was so engrossed in trying to figure out who the campus rapist was that I was putting myself at risk and ignoring him. Over winter break, he slept with Madison, even though he knew that she is the one girl I truly hate. We got back together after winter break, but he didn't tell me about it, I ran into Madison one day and she did. After that, I told Logan I couldn't trust him, let alone look at him. We broke up again, and a couple days later, he caught me kissing Wallace's roommate. He never really liked Piz, and made sure I knew. Right before the summer, Piz taped us half-naked in his bed for a frat initiation. It was put on-line and e-mailed to Dick, who of course showed it to Logan. He had been dating Parker for a couple months by then and we had hardly talked, but as soon as he saw that video, he stormed the campus radio station where Piz worked and beat the crap out of him. I didn't even know what was going on when Logan came to me all beat up and told me what he had done. The sad thing is, Piz denied it at first, and even though Logan and I have known each other for half of our lives, I believed Piz over him. I just didn't want to believe that Logan had been right. Parker of course found out and accused Logan of not being over me, they got in a huge fight, then we went our separate ways at the beginning of the summer. Anyway, I know that if Logan and I can get through all of that and still be friends, then there's no reason why you two can't be more," she finished, sucking in a deep breath. **

"**Wow, I mean I knew you guys dated, but I never knew it was so serious. And you're back with Duncan again now? Even though he has a baby with another girl? Man this is completely confusing." Hannah said getting up from the couch.**

**Veronica laughed, "Yeah, tell me about it, story of my life… one big confusing mess." **

**Hannah walked towards the door, "Thanks for talking to me Veronica. I feel a little bit better now."**

"**If it helps any, I think he was really falling hard and fast for you, and it scared him. Those couple of weeks you guys dated, he was like the Logan I used to know when we were kids, when we were still the Fab-four. He had this light to his eyes that I hadn't seen in a really long time, not even when we were together. Just so you know…" **

**Hannah smiled, "Thanks, it does help, a lot." She turned to the door again and stopped when her hand was on the knob. "I know we're not the best of friends, hell we hardly know each other, and I know you have plans with Duncan tomorrow, but I was wondering if Tuesday or Wednesday you might want to do a spa day with me, get to know each other better."**

**Veronica smiled, "Yeah that sounds like fun. Would it be ok if I brought Mac too? After tonight I think she could use some cheering up."**

**Hannah nodded, "Sure, she's seems pretty cool. Thanks again Veronica." With that, she waved and disappeared out the door.**

**Veronica filled the tub with some hot water and bath salts and got in to soak then changed into her pajamas and rented a movie from the TV to watch until Mac came back. She looked at her watch an hour later as her eyes began to droop closed. It was after midnight, **_What could they possibly talk about for 3 hours?_** Was her last thought as she drifted off to sleep.**

**Mac could tell from the look on Veronica's face that she had been shocked when she told her she was going to talk to Dick. She snuck a glance over at Logan who was wearing a puzzled expression, before turning to look at Dick. He looked completely sober and serious for a change. He caught her gaze and gave her a brief smile before squeezing her shoulder. Logan still looked after them confused a moment later as the elevator door opened on their floor and Dick pulled her out first to lead her to his room. **

**When they got to the door, he removed his arm from around her and unlocked the door. He held it open and walked in silently behind her. He closed the door and walked over to the mini-fridge. **

"**I guess take a seat wherever. You want something to drink?"**

**Mac just wrapped her arms around herself and shook her head no. She gazed around the room, it was huge, she walked towards the French doors and out onto the roof top deck. He had his own pool out there. She slowly walked over and sat down, taking her shoes off and dangling her feet in the water. Dick watched her from the doorway for a minute before sitting next to her and handing her a bottle of water.**

"**Thanks." She said quietly**

**Dick just nodded and stared at the water for a moment, "Look Mac, I know I already said it, but I really am sorry for what I said at dinner. I'm sorry for a lot of things actually."**

**Mac looked up, "It's ok, really. I'm fine; it just caught me off guard."**

"**No Mac, it's not. Maybe if I hadn't been such a jerk to him, he never would have ended up like that. Maybe he would have told me what was going on; I could have helped him or something."**

**She put her hand over his, "It's not your fault. Cassidy was just sick. I beat myself up for a long time too, thinking I should have noticed something. I think in his own way, he knew we loved him. He just couldn't live with his guilty conscience."**

**He stared at her hand for a moment. "Why are you being nice to me? I've been nothing but an ass to you since the moment we met."**

**Mac just smiled, "Call me a glutton for punishment I guess. Besides, you're not that bad."**

**Dick snorted, "You say that, but you don't know all the awful things I've done."**

**Mac nodded and then shrugged, "The way I see it, the past is the past. As long as you try to make yourself a better person, I think that's what counts."**

**He stared at her silently for a few minutes before Mac got uncomfortable, "What?"**

"**You're a great person Mac, and a good friend, even though I don't deserve it."**

**She chuckled and blushed, "You're not gonna try to kiss me again are you?"**

**Dick intertwined their fingers and squeezed making her look up at him, "Not tonight, but I won't promise that I won't try later." He said with a big goofy smile.**

**Mac blushed a deep shade of red and pushed his shoulder playfully, "Do you ever give up?"**

**He just laughed. Mac shook her head and they both stared up at the sky for a few minutes, before she broke the silence again.**

"**I know this is gonna sound weird but, you're like this big ladies man on campus or whatever, and you were in high school too, so why did you let Madison push you around so much?"**

**He was quiet for a minute, and she didn't think he was going to answer. "I think I stuck with her because it was safe. We saw what happened with Lily, Logan, Veronica, and Duncan. Love looked like it sucked, and I couldn't have anything that would ruin my 24/7 party life. I think she stuck with me because I was rich. Our dating was a show of her social status in school, she had her own parents' money, but that was never enough."**

**Mac laughed and Dick looked at her, "What's so funny?"**

**She thought about not saying anything, but then decided since he was opening up to her, she'd do the same. "Ok, you can not tell anyone about this, Veronica and I are the only 2 that know ok."**

**He gave her a puzzled look and shook his head, "Yeah, ok."**

"**Back in high school, I hired Veronica to look into my parents. I look and act nothing like them, so I figured I may have been adopted and they just never told me. Veronica found out that I was actually switched at birth with another baby girl, born the same day. By the time everything got figured out, our parents just decided to keep the child they had been raising as their own."**

**It seemed to dawn on Dick exactly who the other child was, "Holy shit, you mean, you and Madison… she should be a Mac Kenzie and you should be a Sinclair?"**

**Mac nodded, "See, I knew you were smarter than you looked."**

"**Wow, so Madison doesn't know?"**

"**Nope, Mrs. Sinclair does. Veronica and I went to her birthday party senior year and I forgot my purse when I stopped to talk to Lauren. She knew who I was as soon as she opened the door when I went back to get it. She calls me every once in a while to see how I'm doing."**

"**Wow."**

"**Yeah, I think you already said that."**

"**So why didn't you confront her about it?"**

"**I realized that even though I fight with my family, and I think that they're totally weird, they're still my family. They're the ones who fed me and took care of me, so even though they aren't my blood relatives, they're my family."**

"**Yeah, but if you went to the Sinclair's you wouldn't have to work your way through school, you'd be set."**

"**Don't get me wrong, I've thought about it more than once, but when it comes down to it, the money just isn't that important to me. I'd rather work for something and know that I earned it then just have it given to me."**

"**No wonder you think I'm an ass then, I've just had things given to me my whole life."**

**Mac just laughed and ruffled Dick's hair, then looked back at the water, "You wanna go for a swim?"**

**His grin was a mile wide, "Why, you wanna go skinny dipping?"**

**Mac rolled her eyes and laughed, "I never said I did, I just asked if you did." With that, she pushed him forward into the water.**

**He came up sputtering to see her doubled over in laughter. When she looked up she saw him stalking towards her in the water with an evil glint in his eye. She tried to scramble to her feet, but she wasn't fast enough as he grabbed one arm and one foot and dragged her into the water with him. **

**When she resurfaced, she glared at him. "Oh Dick, that was a bad idea, you're in trouble now."**

**They chased each other through the water until Dick finally pinned her into a corner. They both laughed until they realized just how close together they were. Mac's breathing hitched and she couldn't help but stare at his lips. Dick watched her and couldn't help but smirk to himself as he saw her stare at him. He leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss before pulling back. Mac still had her eyes closed, and he couldn't help but think how cute she looked in her soaking wet clothes.**

**She didn't say anything as she opened her eyes, just stared at him. Finally he spoke, "I think we should get back inside out of these wet clothes before we catch something."**

**Mac just nodded and let him help her out of the pool. He grabbed 2 towels out of the bathroom, came back and wrapped one around her. They were staring transfixed at one another as he slowly rubbed her arms up and down with the towel, when the phone rang, breaking them both out of their haze. It was Logan. He told him he'd call him back in the morning and ushered Mac back inside. He gave her one of his t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants to change into. When she came out of the bathroom, he had changed and was sitting on the couch. **

"**I know it's late and everything, but you want to stay for a while and watch TV or a movie or something?"**

**She looked toward the TV, saw his x-box plugged in, and smiled. "How bout we play a game instead?"**

**He followed her gaze, smiled, and nodded. He watched her as she looked through the games. He wasn't sure what was happening between them, but whatever it was, he couldn't wait to find out. **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long since my last post. I've been holed up reading the last Harry Potter book while not at work. Now I'm done, so here's the new part. Thank you guys so much for reading!**

**Monday morning**

**As promised, Duncan picked Veronica up at 7 am sharp. They grabbed a quick breakfast and were on their way to Sydney. Lily was engrossed in the Dora DVD she was watching in the back seat and Duncan held one of Veronica's hands in his while driving with the other. They had been riding in a comfortable silence for about 30 minutes when Duncan spoke.**

"**So I was thinking, when all of the paperwork is done, I could rent a boat and we could cruise around Sydney harbor for the day."**

**Veronica smiled brightly, "That sounds great," then added excitedly, "I can't believe when this is all over, you actually get to come home with me!"**

**He laughed, "I hardly think your dad will let your ex-boyfriend and her 1 & ½ year old daughter move in. Besides, that apartment wouldn't fit all 4 of us, and I was thinking about buying a house on the beach. Someplace with a big backyard so Lily and Backup will have someplace play."**

"**First of all **_**ex**_**-boyfriend," Veronica teased, "and why would Backup need someplace to play? Do you plan on adopting him?"**

**Duncan blushed slightly, "Maybe one day, mostly I'll just need it for Lily, but Backup too when you come visit or sleepover… and as far as your dad knows, I am still your **_**ex**_**, unless you've told him otherwise."**

"**Mmm, tell me more of these sleepovers you talk about…"**

"**Well you can start by attending one tonight," he said with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.**

"**Oh really, and what do I need to bring to this sleepover?" Veronica asked, playing along.**

**Duncan turned and locked eyes with her momentarily before turning back to face the road, his eyes had darkened to almost black, "Nothing."**

**She could feel her heart race faster and her pulse quickening.**

"**Stay at my place tonight. We can have a nice romantic dinner, and Astrid can watch Lily in one of the other rooms until she goes to bed."**

**Veronica struggled to get her heart rate back under control, "And just what am I supposed to wear to this romantic dinner?"**

"**I think what you have on is fine, but we can go to the mall later and get you something else if you'd rather."**

**She thought about it for a half second, "Ok."**

**Duncan shot a glance over at her and couldn't hide the huge smile on his face, "Really?"**

"**Yeah, you're stuck with me now Kane."**

"**I don't mind at all Mars, don't mind at all…"**

**Back at the Hotel**

**Mac woke up on the floor confused where she was and why she wasn't in bed. She could see the sun shining in through the French doors and became acutely aware of an arm wrapped around her waist, attached to a warm body stretched the length of hers. As she slowly took in her surroundings, she remembered the night before and realized the arm belonged to Dick. She lifted his arm a little and rolled onto her back, careful not to wake him. They must have fallen asleep in the middle of their game last night because the TV was still on and both of their characters were still standing unmoving on the screen.**

**Mac turned her head to look at Dick and found him much closer than she had realized. She could feel his even breaths on her cheek, and couldn't help but notice how adorable he was when he was asleep. His usual cocky grin was gone, replaced by a look of total peace, and he looked almost innocent.**

**Without even realizing it, she rolled towards him and reached up to brush his bangs off his forehead, where they had drooped into his eyes. Dick woke as soon as he felt her hand touch his face. They stared at each other for a moment before Mac snatched her hand back and blushed looking away again. Dick realized his arm was still around her waist and slowly moved it as he rolled over onto his back and sat up. She sat up next to him and they both glanced at one another before looking away and laughing. **

**Dick finally got up and without thinking offered Mac his hand to help her up. She took his offered hand and their bodies were flush once more. She stared into his eyes for a moment before looking away. **

**Dick let her hand go and spoke up, "Uh, I could use some coffee, you want some?"**

"**Yeah, coffee sounds good." Mac agreed, going back outside and grabbing her clothes that were now dry.**

**Dick met her at the doorway with a bottle of water. "Sorry, I forgot I gave the last of it to Parker a couple days ago. We can go downstairs and get some if you want."**

**Mac looked down at what she was wearing and then to the clothes in her hand, "Um, if we're going downstairs, I think I need to take a shower and change first."**

**Dick's cocky grin was back in place instantly, "Hey, I've got no problem sharing my shower with a hot chick."**

**Mac smacked his arm.**

"**Hey, ow, geez, I just meant you could use my shower. See if I ever call you hot again."**

**She blushed, "Sorry, thanks really, but I'd kind of rather use my own shower so I can change into some clean clothes that aren't falling off me or smell like chlorine. I'll still go with you for the coffee though. You want to meet down stairs in like 20 minutes?"**

**They walked towards the door, "Sure, that'll give me some time to get cleaned up. Uh, I was gonna go catch some waves afterwards, you wanna come?"**

**Mac stopped at the door, hand on the knob and turned to face him. "I've never really surfed before, but I can bring my laptop down and watch you. I've got nothing else to do today since V's gone and I vetoed shopping with Gia and Parker."**

"**Glad to know where I stand on the list." Dick mumbled.**

**She immediately felt bad, "No, no, that's not what I meant, I just…"**

**He laughed, "Don't worry about it. I know you're more comfortable with the girls. I can teach you to surf if you want to though."**

**Mac thought about it for a minute, "Ok, sure, I'll try it, but I'm warning you now, I generally suck at any and all sports."**

**Dick laughed again, "Don't worry about it. You can't be any worse than Donut."**

**Mac laughed too as she opened the door, "I'll see you downstairs in 20 minutes."**

**He nodded and watched her walk to the elevator. He was just about to close the door when Logan pushed on it. **

**Logan looked from the closed elevator back to Dick.**

"**Did I just see Mac leave here wearing your clothes? Please tell me you two didn't…" he seemed to lose his words and Dick was quick to step in.**

"**Yes she just left, but NO, it was nothing like that."**

"**Really, then please do tell, because you know Veronica is going to kill me when she finds out about this." Logan stood firmly in place and stared at Dick.**

"**Can we talk about this later? I'm supposed to meet her downstairs in 20 minutes." **

**Logan just crossed his arms and quirked his eyebrow in a **_**What do you think?**_** look.**

**Dick sighed, "Fine dude, all we did last night was talk, just like she told Veronica."**

**When Logan continued to just stare at him, he finally gave up and plopped down on the couch. "I'm serious man. We just got all our issues out. Then she pushed me in the pool, so I pulled her in after me. When we got out, I gave her some dry clothes so we could play video games, which we fell asleep on the floor doing, and now she went to shower and get changed before we meet downstairs and head down to the beach. I told her I'd teach her how to surf."**

**Logan just laughed as he crossed the room to sit on the other end of the couch.**

"**What the hell is so funny man?"**

**He just continued to laugh, "Do you realize this is the first time you've actually just **_**slept**_** with a girl and admitted that was it, and quite vehemently might I add."**

**Dick looked mildly uncomfortable, "Whatever man. Mac's just not like that, and she would kick my ass if I said different. I'll see ya later." He got off the couch and walked into his bathroom.**

**Logan smiled and shook his head as he headed for the door. **_Man, he's got it bad, and he doesn't even realize it._

**Girl Talk**

**Parker and Gia were in the elevator heading downstairs when it stopped at the 2****nd**** floor and Hannah got in. She looked at them a bit awkwardly for a moment before she joined them. She gave each of them a nervous smile and turned to stare at the door. Gia nudged Parker.**

"**So Hannah, we were gonna head into town and go to shopping, you wanna come?"**

"**Uh, I don't really want to be a 5****th**** wheel, but thanks."**

"**Don't worry, the guys aren't coming. Troy, Luke, and Casey were headed to the Jet Ski rental place and Logan was headed to Dick's room when we left. Besides, it will give us some time to do the female bonding thing," Gia said.**

**Hannah thought about it for a moment and studied their faces, they both looked genuine, so she smiled and nodded. "Ok, sure, sounds fun. My friends won't be back until tonight anyway."**

**The door opened at the lobby and Gia grabbed both girls by the arm, "Great, let's go. So much shopping, so little time."**

**Parker and Hannah shared a glance behind her back and rolled their eyes before laughing and following behind her.**

**They shopped in a few of the boutiques downtown before deciding to head to the mall to grab some lunch and hit a few more stores. They sat down with their lunch and Gia got strait to the point.**

"**So what's up with you two?"**

**Hannah and Parker shared a confused glance.**

**Parker swallowed her food, "What are you talking about Gia?"**

**She rolled her eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world, "I'm talking about the googley–eyed looks between you and Casey and her and Logan last night at dinner."**

**Hannah blushed and looked down at her plate nervously. Parker looked at her briefly before speaking back up, "Um, don't say anything to Logan yet, but I think I'm going to break things off with him."**

**Gia choked on her drink and Hannah's head snapped up. Parker looked uncomfortably at the two before continuing, "I mean, he's a great guy and everything, but I just don't think it's working, and now with Casey..." she drifted off and sighed, pushing her food around on her plate. "We met over Christmas break and had a thing, then I never called him back when I went back to Hearst. I just don't know. I haven't said anything to Casey about this either, so that means keep your trap shut Gia." **

**Gia rolled her eyes. "Whatever, he still totally has the hots for you, I heard him and Troy talking about it." Then she turned to Hannah, "So, what about you? What's up with you and Logan? There's obviously some history there."**

**She blushed a bright shade of pink. "Well, we dated for a couple weeks in high school and just kind of got ripped apart as things were getting started. My dad didn't like him, he didn't like my dad, so dad sent me to boarding school in Connecticut. Luke ran into my friend Sarah at the Bar-B-Que thing the other night and asked her if we wanted to meet him and some of his friends for lunch the next day. We went and that's when I saw Logan. We hadn't seen or talked to each other until yesterday." She looked at Parker to gauge her reaction as she continued, "I'm not sure what it is, but when I saw him, it was like we never spent 2 years apart, and I keep wondering what would have happened if I had never left."**

**Parker smiled and put her hand on Hannah's arm, "I can't really get mad at you cause I keep asking myself what could have happened with Casey too. I will warn you though, even though they'll both deny it, I think there's still something between Logan and Veronica."**

**Hannah smiled, "I just don't think so. Veronica and I talked last night and I just didn't get that vibe. I do think that they'll always be a part of one another's lives, they've been through too much not to be, but I don't think their feelings are romantic anymore."**

"**Well whatever, you've known them longer. I'm gonna talk to Logan tonight and tell him everything. Come tomorrow, he's all yours."**

**The girls all shared a laugh.**

"**You know what this means you guys?" Gia broke in suddenly. Both girls turned to look at her with raised eyebrows. "It means both of you need new date outfits!"**

**Hannah and Parker laughed again.**

"**Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Neither one of us has even talked to the guys yet. We don't even know that either one will take us back," Hannah said.**

"**Are you serious?" Gia looked at the two girls like they were crazy. "Have you not seen the way the two of them drool over you two? Of course they'll say yes. Now finish your food and let's get shopping!"**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Wow, so it's only taken me about a year to get over my writer's block and crank out some more chapters. Sorry I left you all hanging, and hopefully you're all still interested. I have gone back and revised some of the first chapter, so you might want to re-read it; if not, no big deal, they're not big changes. I hope that I'll crank out a chapter a week. So far, I have the next 2 written and a rough outline of a third. Now, with out further ado, on with the show…**

**Back at the hotel **

**Logan had been expecting to spend the day surfing with Dick, but since he was spending the day with Mac, he figured he would give them some space. After wandering around the hotel aimlessly for about an hour, he resigned himself to a day spent in his suite playing video games, at the pool, or some combination of the two. He was just about to head back upstairs when he ran into Wallace.**

"**Hey man, what are you up to today?" Wallace asked.**

**Logan stuffed his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "Dick and I were gonna surf, but he's playing teacher for Mac, so I opted out. It looks like a fun filled day of video games and lounging by the pool for me today."**

**Wallace shook hid head and laughed, "Talk about the odd couple…what is it the two of them have in common again?"**

**Logan laughed now too, "I have no idea, but you don't even know the half of it. I saw Mac leaving his room this morning, wearing his clothes and carrying hers."**

**If Wallace's eyebrows climbed any higher, they would no longer be on his face. "Please tell me I heard you wrong," he begged.**

"**Don't worry, I already asked Dick about it, he said they just fell asleep playing video games."**

"**And you believed him…"**

**Logan snorted, "Yeah, I think I do. He actually seems to like her. I've never seen him so quick to deny sleeping with any chick. In fact, I don't think he's _ever_ denied it before."**

**Wallace laughed, but still looked skeptical.**

"**Trust me, if he's willing to incur the wrath of Ronnie, he must have it bad. He's pretty much been scared of her as long as I can remember; with good reason too," he chuckled.**

**After a minute went by in silence Wallace rolled his eyes, "Come on now, you can't just leave it like that, now I need to know why."**

"**You've been hanging around Ronnie to long," Logan laughed before starting his story. We were all hanging out at DK's house the summer before 7th grade. DK and Beaver were playing video games and the rest of us were playing foosball. It was Dick and I vs. Lily and Ronnie. The girls were trying to distract us any way they could because they were down by a point and we were about to win. Then he had to make one of his usual bonehead comments about how they would never be able to distract him, because there was nothing worth looking at. Of course Lily got pissed, and Veronica looked like she was about to cry. It was a good ploy; as soon as he let his guard down to say he was sorry, Veronica knocked the ball in our goal and proceeded to shove the pole she was holding onto right in his crotch. She told him that his name may be Dick, but he had just been served his balls for dinner."**

**Wallace was laughing so hard he could hardly breathe and his eyes were starting to water.**

**Logan was laughing too and had a smile on his face as he recalled the rest, "He ate his words a month later when Lily threw her back to school pool party; they were both wearing brand new bikinis and were definitely filling them out better than at the beginning of the summer. Dick was so distracted starring at them that he walked right off the side of the diving board. He scraped one leg on the cement wall of the pool and whacked his head on the board itself."**

**Wallace took a couple minutes to compose himself, then shook his head, "Man, even then V was mean. I thought she didn't get like that til after Lily died and you guys…" Suddenly realizing what he was saying, he shut his mouth and stared at his shoes before looking up again. "So anyway, V left me the car. I was gonna drive into Sydney and do that walk the sky bridge thing; you want to come?"**

**Logan thought for a minute **_Boring day by myself, or watch Wallace freak out when he realizes just how high the bridge actually is. _**An evil smirk spread across his face, "Sure, I'll come."**

"**I don't even want to know," Wallace mumbled shaking his head and walking across the lobby to the car park as Logan trailed behind, smirk still firmly in place. **

**That afternoon, Veronica and Duncan stopped at the mall on the way back to Duncan's hotel for Veronica to get a dress for their romantic dinner and some clothes for the next day. She called Mac on the way just to make sure that she was ok and tell her she wouldn't be back that night. They talked for a few minutes and agreed to have a girl's day the next day. When they entered the department store, Veronica sent Duncan to the Kids section with Lily so he wouldn't see her dress before dinner.**

**She picked out a gorgeous, red cocktail dress with crisscrossing shoulder straps and an empire waist skirt that flowed to just above her knees. After picking out a pair of peep-toe red heels and a lacy, red bra and panty set to match; she breezed through the casual section and grabbed a cute pair of cuffed white shorts and a halter-top to wear the next day. After paying, Veronica collected her bags and went to find Duncan. She found him on the 2****nd**** floor in the little girls section with Lily on one arm and a pile of clothes on the other. He looked almost helpless, as the sales girl appeared to run around and add one of everything to the pile. He was relieved when he spotted her and she immediately came to the rescue putting back all but the 3 cutest outfits, 2 cute bathing suits, a pair of sneakers, and a pair of sandals.**

**Veronica put her bags down and took Lily from his arms while he paid. Duncan jumped almost a foot off the ground when she reached her hand into his pocket and took the keys. She and Lily laughed, "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I was just getting the keys so I could get Lily strapped into the car."**

**Duncan blushed, "Don't worry about it; it just startled me, that's all. Go ahead, I'll grab the bags and be there in a couple minutes." Veronica kissed him on the cheek and left with a still giggling Lily on her hip.**

**When they reached Duncan's hotel, Veronica took Lily out of her car seat, while Duncan grabbed their bags from the back. **

**Astrid met them inside and took Lily to get her fed and give her a bath. "Victor said to let you two know he would have dinner ready in about 30 minutes," she said before walking out of the room.**

**Duncan thanked her and put his arms around Veronica, drawing her closer to him, "Alone at last," he breathed.**

**Veronica laughed as she leaned up and placed her arms around his neck, bringing his head down to hers for a passion filled kiss. They only broke apart when air became a necessity and leaned their foreheads together.**

"**I guess I better go put my dress on," Veronica breathed.**

"**Why bother, I'll just have to get you out of it," he teased with a mischievous glint in his eyes.**

**Her mouth fell open. She had never heard anything like that come from the old Duncan. "Wow, um, that's something I never expected to hear from your mouth. You've definitely been spending too much time with Logan."**

**He laughed, "I guess not getting any for the last 18 months has made me a little bolder."**

**She gaped at him, awe struck, "You mean you never, I-I mean you haven't…" she stuttered and trailed off.**

"**Wow, a tongue tied Veronica Mars, there's something I never thought I'd see; and no, I haven't, not since the last time we were together."**

**She just continued to stare at him, mouth hanging open.**

**Duncan laughed, "First tongue tied, and now speechless; don't worry about it. I know you and Logan were together, it's ok."**

**Veronica looked slightly embarrassed and stared at her shoes.**

"**Look, I'm sorry Ronica, I didn't mean to upset or embarrass you. Go get dressed and I'll meet you in the dining room in a few minutes." He kissed her on the forehead and gave hear a reassuring squeeze. "I'm serious Veronica, don't worry about it. Now, you're already beautiful, so go put your dress on and I'm sure you'll be drop dead gorgeous."**

**Veronica gave him a small smile, "Anything for you." **

**Duncan smiled back, "There's my girl."**

**She gave him one last smile before grabbing her bags and heading down the hall.**

**When she stepped into the dining room, she could see Duncan had gone all out. There was a beautiful table set for two, candles glowing, and champagne chilling. She ran her fingers over the table taking everything in. **

**Duncan watched her from the doorway, she looked stunning. He wasn't sure whether to call her his own personal angel, or a smoldering temptress. He walked towards her, a single pink rose in hand. He stopped just behind her, and kissed her shoulder. "Lily always did say red should be your color," he said bringing the arm with the rose in front of her.**

**Veronica smiled, taking the rose and turning around. **_I'd forgotten how well he cleans up_**, she thought to herself. He was now dressed in a black Armani suit, with a white, button-up dress shirt, but had forgone the tie and left the top button undone. His face was newly shaved, and she found her fingers reaching to caress its smoothness of their own accord. He grasped her fingers and brought them to his lips, kissing each one. **

"**Let's eat before all this food gets cold and goes to waste," Duncan said, pulling out her chair. "I had Victor make your favorite." He pulled the lid off her dish and she smiled. There was a large plate of manicotti accompanied by garlic knots and a sprig of parsley.**

**Veronica's eyes were sparkling with unshed tears when she looked up. "You remembered."**

"**How could I possibly forget?" She smiled and they stared at one another for a moment before Duncan broke eye contact. "Now let's hurry up and eat dinner so we can get to dessert."**

**She couldn't tell which dessert he meant, and as she dug into her dinner, realized she didn't really care as long as they were together. **


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: **I know I've been gone a while, but please review guys, it really does motivate me. A special thanks to **vmarslovahhh18 **for being my one and only reviewer the last chapter, I'm starting out with some MaDi just for you. Here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy!

* * *

**At the Beach**

**Mac collapsed on the beach, grabbing her ringing cell phone as she went.**

"**Hello?" **

"_**Hey Mac, how are you? I was a little worried when you didn't come back to our room last night."**_

"**Yeah, sorry about that, we ended up playing video games and falling asleep on the floor."**

"_**I take everything is ok between the two of you then?" **_

"**Yup, we're good."**

"_**Good, just saying you're good so I won't worry, or more than good?"**_

"**It's a toss up between options 1 and 3 right now, but I'll let you know when it changes."**

"_**Are you still there?"**_

"**Uh, no, we're actually down at the beach. He's attempting to teach me how to surf."**

"_**And you went willingly?"**_

"**Yeah, why don't we do a movie night tonight and I'll fill you in."**

"_**Well, I was actually calling to tell you I wouldn't be back tonight. I'm going to stay at Duncan's, but how about a girls day tomorrow? Hannah invited us to the spa."**_

"**Yeah, ok, sounds good. I guess I'll see you in the morning then."**

"_**Ok, you two crazy kids have fun, and don't do anything I wouldn't do."**_

"**I don't think you have to worry about that," Mac snorted.**

"_**Bye Mac."**_

"**Bye Veronica." **

**By now, Dick had followed her back to their towels and dug his board in the sand before collapsing next to her. Mac groaned and flopped back on her towel after hanging up and Dick turned to look at her.**

"**You ok Mackie?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.**

**She sat back up slowly, "Yeah, I just never realized what hard work surfing really is. I have muscles that hurt that I didn't even know I had."**

**Dick laughed, "I guess I should have warned you. The first time I ever surfed, I think I was stiff and sore for about a week." She gave him a murderous glare and he quit laughing. He stood and offered a hand to help her up, "Come on, let's head back to the hotel. I'll order some room service and we can relax in the hot tub till it gets there."**

**Mac took his offered hand and they stood face to face for a moment before Dick let go of her hand and grabbed his surfboard. Mac grabbed their towels and followed behind him. **

**When they got back upstairs, Mac went to wash the sand and salt-water off herself in the shower while Dick ordered the room service. He was just hanging up the phone when she emerged.**

"**I ordered you the eggplant parmesan, I hope that's ok." **

**He was rewarded with a radiant smile. "Yeah, that's great. It's my favorite actually. How did you know?"**

**Dick shuffled his feet as he walked towards the bathroom to rinse himself off too. "Let's just say I pay more attention than you think…" and with that the bathroom door swung closed.**

**Mac smiled to herself while walking over to the mini-fridge and grabbing a bottle of water for her, and a beer for Dick. She took them outside and sent them down next to the hot tub while she turned it on and got the bubbles moving. She had just sat down in the soothing water when she felt Dick's hands on her shoulders. He massaged her neck for a moment before she felt him push her forward and slide into the water behind her.**

**Suddenly, Mac was acutely aware of his chiseled chest pressed into her bare back. All thought left her though as he began to work his magic on the tight muscles in her neck, shoulders, and back. She had to bite back a moan as he worked on a particularly large knot in her lower back. Mac closed her eyes, leaning back into the pressure, then leaded her head back on Dick's shoulder.**

**10 minutes later, she finally came back down to earth as she realized that Dick had stopped the massage, and was now pressed against her back with his arms wrapped around her waist. She slowly opened her eyes to find him staring down at her with a small smile on his face. **

**Mac grinned as she sat back up and turned slightly to face him, "What?"**

**He just shook his head and stared off into the distance, so she gave him a shove and repeated herself. Dick briefly looked her in the eyes before settling on the horizon again, and Mac became worried as his eyes seemed to cloud over in guilt. When he finally did speak, she had to strain to hear him. "I really finally get it, and I'm sorry it took me so long." When he finally looked at her again, her face was scrunched in confusion.**

"**What are you talking about? You finally get what? And what are you sorry for?"**

**He sighed and raked his hands back through his hair, and when she caught his eye again, the look of guilt was back. "Beav… Cassidy," he mumbled, staring down at his hands and refusing to meet her gaze. "I finally really get what he saw in you, because I see it too. I just wish I had seen it sooner, not been such an ass all this time."**

**Mac didn't have time to respond before there was a knock on the door and Dick practically ran from the hot tub. He returned a minute later and let her know their dinner was there. When she dried off and went back inside, he had her plate sitting at the breakfast bar with a new bottle of water. They sat and ate in awkward silence. When Mac was done, Dick put their plates back on the cart and wheeled it to the door. **

**She followed closely behind, "I uh, think I'm gonna head back to my room. It's been a really long day and I'm wiped out. Thanks for dinner though, and the surfing lesson."**

"**Uh, yeah, no problem, any time," he mumbled, still holding the door open.**

**She was the one to surprise him this time when she reached up and brushed her lips against his before darting out the door and not looking back. If she had, she would have seen the goofy grin settle over his face before he shut the door.**

* * *

**Hannah, Parker, and Gia arrived back at the hotel around 4:30 laden with shopping bags. They put their bags down in their rooms and changed into their new bikinis to go down to the beach. They had just spread the towels on the sand when Troy beached his wave runner and grabbed Gia from behind.**

**She let out a shriek as he laughed and put her down.**

"**UGH! Troy! You're soaking wet!"**

"**Yeah, that does tend to happen when you're in the water," he quipped.**

**Hannah and Parker laughed as Gia huffed and disentangled herself from his arms. She put her hands on her hips and gave him a death glare. "I know that, but **_**I**_** wasn't in the water Troy.** _**I**_** was nice and dry on the sand when **_**you**_** got me all wet!" she fumed.**

**He just smirked at her, "Really? Then maybe we should head back upstairs."**

**She turned bright red as the other two girls doubled over in laughter. She swatted his shoulder and pushed him back towards the water. "That's not what I meant and you know it, and if you're not careful you won't be getting any of it later either."**

**Troy gave her a mock salute and another smirk as he ran back down to his wave runner to rejoin Casey and Luke back in the water. **

**Gia rolled her eyes before settling back down on her towel between Hannah and Parker. "I swear I don't know why I bother with him sometimes."**

"**Now come on Gia, he must be doing something right to keep you around," Parker teased.**

**She blushed as she seemed to think about that and Hannah swatted her leg, "Uh-oh, someone's having dirty thoughts," she sing-songed.**

"**Well, there is this one thing he does with ice cubes and that hard shell ice cream topping where…"**

"**Gia!" Hannah and Parker yelled in unison.**

"**I didn't mean you had to elaborate," Hannah laughed while looking slightly disgusted.**

**Gia blushed and turned to look down the beach. "Hey Parker, isn't that your friend over there with Dick?"**

**Hannah sat up to get a better view and Parker turned to watch Mac plop onto the sand, cell phone in hand, while Dick followed shortly behind her with his surf board. "Huh, I didn't really peg Mac as the beachy, surfing type. She's never gone with me when I've asked her, and I thought she and Dick didn't get along, like at all."**

"**I think she used to date Dick's brother," Gia threw out, realizing what she said when Parker turned to look at her.**

"**You mean Cassidy? The guy that died?"**

**Gia looked like she might be sick for a moment before swallowing the lump in her throat and nodding; she let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding when Parker focused her attention back on Mac. They watched as she finished her conversation on the phone and flopped back on her towel before sitting back up as Dick sat down next to her. The two talked for a couple minutes before he stood, helped her back up, and they headed towards the hotel.**

**The girls shared a knowing look as they watched them leave. "Well, I wouldn't have pegged her as Dick's type, but they sure looked cozy over there," Hannah commented with a smile.**

"**Yeah, I guess they got over their fight the other night then, whatever that was even about…" Parker replied.**

"**Sure looks like it," Gia agreed before rolling over to continue sunbathing. The other girls shrugged and did the same, intent on catching the last few afternoon rays.**

* * *

Sorry this one was kind of short. I just wanted to get it up. Let me know what you guys think. Thanks for reading!!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N:Wow, it's been almost 3 years since I updated this story, man my muse sucks. I have the next couple chapters done and hopefully there's somebody still reading this. This chapter is a little short, but it was really meant to be part of the last chapter. So anyway, thank you to any of my old readers who are still reading and welcome to those that are new. Now back to the story...

Disclaimer: Still not mine, oh how I wish they were...

**Back at the Hotel**

**Logan and Wallace arrived back at the hotel around 5 and went back to Logan's room to play video games.**

**"Dude, you totally should have seen your face man," Logan laughed. "I think if we wouldn't have been at the front of the line, you would've turned tail and went back."**

**Wallace jammed his hands in his pockets, "Whatever man. I was fine until you told me not to look down, then tossed that book of matches to make me look," he huffed.**

**"I couldn't help it! Man, I thought you were gonna push the guide out the way to hightail it down the other side."**

**"Well when we got to the top he just decided to stop and chit-chat, and I really needed to go to the bathroom."**

**"Whatever you say man," Logan chuckled, while turning on the Xbox 360.**

**They played in comfortable silence for a while before he paused the game to grab some drinks. He returned from the mini-fridge a couple minutes later and tossed a bottle of water to Wallace before he sat back down.**

**"Thanks for asking me to go with you today man. That was definitely more fun than lounging around here all day."**

**"No sweat man. If you weren't there to distract me on the way back down, you'd probably still find me wrapped around the cable up at the top."**

**They both laughed and seemed to realize they were having a 'moment' as they trailed off and sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, before picking back up their controllers and going back to their game.**

**About an hour later they heard laughter out in the hall before the door opened and Parker, Gia, and Hannah all stepped into the suite from the beach. They stopped abruptly and fell silent when they saw Logan and Wallace sitting on the floor in front of the TV.**

**Logan caught Hannah's eye for a moment before she blushed and turned away, and his gaze landed on Parker. Wallace and Gia watched the exchange silently before he stood up and headed towards the door.**

**"I'll catch ya later man."**

**Gia and Hannah turned to follow him, "Um yeah, we gotta run too, the guys will be getting back soon."**

**Parker threw Gia a pleading look over her shoulder as they waved and ducked out the door. Once it clicked shut, she and Logan both stared at the floor, not sure what to say.**

**After a couple minutes of awkward silence, she finally looked up, "Uh, I'm gonna go get changed, but um, can we talk when I get done?" she asked nervously.**

**Logan's head shot up and he stared at her for a moment before nodding and seeming to find his voice, "Yeah, sure. I'll just um, order us some food."**

**"Ok."**

**She stepped back out of the bedroom a few minutes later and sat on the couch, while Logan paced. "Uh, do you think you can sit down?"**

**"Oh, yeah, sure."**

**"So..." she started, not really sure what she wanted to say.**

**"So..."**

**"Ok, I'm not really sure how to say this, but to just say it, so... I think we should see other people."**

**Logan was silent for a minute while he tried to make sure he heard her correctly. He didn't think she had noticed anything between he and Hannah, and they had already talked about Veronica, so he wanted to make sure, "This isn't about Veronica again is it? Cause I..."**

**Parker cut him off, "No. This time is about me. I mean, don't get me wrong, I still really like you, but I think I might have feelings for this other guy too, and I just don't think it would be fair to either one of us if I didn't say something, cause then I'd be a total hypocrite."**

**A small smile tugged at his lips, but quickly disappeared. He was quiet for a minute before he spoke again, "So then this is about Casey."**

**It was a statement, not a question and Parker blushed, staring at her hands in her lap, not answering, but letting him know he was right. "We kind of met over winter break while I was home in Colorado. He was there with his buddies on a ski trip. We hung out a little over a week and went to this party at the ski lodge on New Year's eve. It was great, and we had a lot of fun, but we never really talked about what would happen when school started back up. I had lost my phone at the party the night before, so when I got back on the plane to school the next day, I didn't have his number and the one I had given him wasn't in service anymore..."**

**She finnaly looked up and net his gaze, "Then when I got back to school, you and Veronica were on the outs, we started hanging out, and I kind of forgot about it. Then the other day when I saw him again, I don't know I just got this feeling in my gut and I don't know how to explain it."**

**Logan just nodded his head and turned to look out at the balcony doors at the water. She stared at her hands again before continuing, "That and I've been talking to Hannah.."**

**That seemed to snap him out of his musings, as his head whipped around to stare at her as she continued, "Whether you admit it or not, you kept stealing glances at her the other night, and again when we came in, and I know she still likes you so..."**

**"Did she say that?" He interrupted.**

**"Gee, don't get upset or anything..."**

**Logan seemed to realize his mistake and quickly tried to back pedal, "That's not what I meant, I..."**

**Parker laughed at his look of panic, "It's fine Logan, really. We already talked about it, and it's totally cool with me if you want to hang out with Hannah for the rest of the trip. I was just gonna call down to the front desk and see if they have any open rooms I can stay in the rest of the trip. It would just be weird for u to share a bed now, ya know? "**

**He was clearly caught a little off guard and it took him a minute to respond, "Uh, you don't have to do that. I mean we're still friends right? Just keep the bed and I'll sleep out here on the couch."**

**She looked skeptical, "Are you sure it won't be weird? I mean, this is your room, what if you guys want to be alone or whatever?"**

**Logan laughed, "Then I guess we'll just have to hang a sock on the door or something. Isn't that what you dorm kids do?"**

**Parker laughed and gave a light shudder, "On second thought, she has a room to herself, how bout you guys just go over there. As much as I like you guys, there are just some things I don't want to see or hear my ex-boyfriend and my new gal pal doing."**

**He just laughed again and smiled, "Deal."**


	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed/alerted/favorited this story. It really means a lot to see that people are still interested in this story after so long. Now, back to our regularly scheduled program...**

**At Duncan's...**

**Veronica woke early the next morning. She was lying on her side with Duncan's arm wrapped around her waist, her head tucked into the crook of his neck, their legs tangled together, and her left hand was intertwined with his right hand on top of his chest. He was still sound asleep. She smiled and cuddled in closer to his side, if possible, as she remembered the events of the previous night...**

_**"And now for desert," Duncan said, coming around the table and taking Veronica's hand to help her from her chair.**_

_**She smiled cheekily, "Is there **__**real**__** desert, or am **__**I**__** the desert."**_

_**There was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes that she hadn't seen in years as he responded, "How about a little bit of both?"**_

_**Veronica laughed before following him to his bedroom. There were candles lit on every available surface and the bed had red silk sheets with a platter full of strawberries, whipped cream, sugar and chocolate sauce in the middle. "Boy, somebody sure thought he was getting lucky tonight."**_

_**Duncan laughed and blushed a faint shade of pink. "Well having you here is lucky enough, I was just hoping to get even luckier..."he said, while wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close.**_

_**He kissed down the side of her neck to the hollow and sucked on the skin there, igniting a fire in the pit of her stomach. She quickly turned in his grasp and crashed her lips onto his, as she threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled him closer. As she brought her body flush against his, she could feel his obvious arousal pressed against her stomach, and suddenly, they were both wearing far too many clothes. She pushed his jacket down his shoulders as they walked backward towards the bed, and Duncan quickly moved the platter of strawberries to the nightstand while Veronica took her shoes off and leaned against the edge of the bed. He stared at her for a moment wanting to memorize exactly how she looked in that moment, because before the last few days, he never thought he'd see her like that again. She gave him a wicked smile and crooked her finger for him to come closer, he was a goner.**_

_**They made love twice before remembering their desert. Duncan dipped a strawberry in the sugar before scooping up some whipped cream and offering it to Veronica.**_

_**She smiled after taking a bite, "You better be careful, a girl could get used to this."**_

_**He propped up on his side and stared down at her with a smile firmly in place, "Any time you want. Just think, once we get back to Neptune, we can do this any time we want."**_

_**"As long as Lily's not home."**_

_**"You'll just have to learn to be quieter Miss Mars," he teased, dropping a dallop of whipped cream on her nose.**_

_**She swiped the cream off indignantly, "I am not loud."**_

_**Duncan just laughed as he rolled his body on top of hers, effective pinning her beneath him, and then attacking her sides with his fingers. As she tried to wiggle out of his grasp, his erection sprang back to life. He stopped his abuse and let her catch her breath as he stared down into her eyes. He smiled at the love he saw shining there.**_

_**"I love you Veronica Mars," he said, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear and caressing her cheek.**_

_**She leaned into his touch and bucked her hips, watching as Duncan hissed in a ragged breath and his eyes glazed over. "I love you too," she whispered, before his lips descended on hers, and they were off again.**_

**"Well, aren't you all smiles this morning?" Duncan said as he amusedly watched the expressions float across his girlfriend's face.**

**Veronica jumped at the sound of his voice. She had been so lost in thought, that she didn't even realize he had woken up.**

**"What can I do to make sure that smile stays there?" he asked.**

**She appeared to think for a moment, "Well for starters, you could get in the shower with me. It's been months since I've been abole to reach this spot on my back..."**

**"Somehow, I think I can manage that," he laughed, standing up and pulling her with him.**

**"So what are you plans for today? Dunca asked, while turning the knob to adjust the water temperature.**

**" Mac and I are supposed to have a girls day today."**

**"Well then, I guess I better enjoy you while I still can."**

**She shrieked as he scooped her up and carried her into the shower with him.**

**Back at the Hotel**

**"Hey Mac, are you here?" Veronica called into their room, as she struggled to open their door and not spill the two coffees she had in her hands. When she received no answer, she kicked the door shut and walked towards the bedroom. She found Mac still laying in bed with the covers pulled over her head and gently kicked the foot she saw hanging off the side. It seemed to work, as the covers moved, and her head peeked out to shoot Veronica a death glare.**

**Veronica laughed as she held one of the coffees out to her, "Rough night?"**

**Mac slowly sat up and greedily took a sip of the coffee, sighing with contentment as the warm liquid filled her veins, "Eh, not really. I just didn't sleep very well."**

**Before she got the chance to explain, there was a knock on the front door. They looked at each other questioningly before Veronica went to answer it. She pulled the door open to see a room service cart in the hallway and recognized Lex from the day they had checked in, "I'm sorry, I think you have the wrong room. We didn't order any room service."**

**He smiled at her politely, and began pushing the cart into the room anyway, "Courtesy of Mr. Casablancas," he said with a wink before turning and walking back out of the room and down the hallway.**

**She stared at the empty doorway for a moment before closing the door. She turned around when she heard Mac's voice, "Who was that?" she asked coming into the living room. "You ordered room service too, geez Mars, you're spoiling me today."**

**A note on the cart caught Veronica's eye, and after reading it she looked at Mac questioningly. "Anything you want to tell me about last night?"**

**Mac swallowed the piece of mango she had just eaten and looked confused until she saw the writing on the card Veronica was holding, **_**Thanks for last night. -Dick**_**.**

**She rolled her eyes at her but blushed none the less, "It's not like that, get your mind out of the gutter Mars. We just hung out and talked." **

**They both piled some muffins and fruit on their plates and went to go sit on the couch. "So spill." Veronica said when they'd been sitting in silence for 5 minutes. **

**Mac swallowed her bite of muffin and shrugged her shoulders, "It was no big deal, we just hung out on the beach yesterday. Heck I should be the one thanking him."**

**"For..."**

**"For trying to teach me to surf, and the massage in the hot tub afterwards."**

**"Woah, woah, back up. You let Dick give you a massage?"**

**"What? It was nice, I had muscles hurting that I didn't even know I had, and he's not as bad as you think."**

**Veronica just smiled and shook her head, "Wow, I never thought I'd see the day you stuck up for Dick."**

**Mac rolled her eyes again, and got up off the couch. "What time are we meeting Hannah?"**

**"10, you have about 40 minutes to get showered and ready."**

**The shower had just started running when the phone in their room rang, and Veronica went to answer it.**

**"Hello?"**

**"**_**Hey Ronnie, did you guys get the room service I ordered?"**_

**"Why yes we did, we just finished eating."**

_**"Ok, good. Just wanted to make sure you had gotten it."**_

**"Yeah, we did. Thanks Dick."**

_**"No problem."**_

**There was silence on the line for a minute, but she could still hear him breathing, so she knew he hadn't hung up yet. "Was there anything else you needed?"**

**He hesitated for a moment, but finally spoke up again, **_**"I know you guys are go to the spa or whatever today, but do you think I could talk to Mac before you guys leave?"**_

**"She's in the shower right now, but I can tell her you called. Is there something wrong?"**

_**"No, I just wanted to apologize for clamming up on her last night and see if she wanted to go to dinner."**_

**"Do I need to be worried about you breaking her heart Dick?"**

_**"No, honest Ronnie. She's really cool and I feel like I can talk to her about anything."**_

**"Yeah, she is pretty cool. When and where is dinner and I'll make sure she's ready to go."**

**She could practically see his smile through the phone. **_**"The restaurant downstairs by the beach, at 7."**_

**"Don't make me regret this Richard."**

_**"I won't."**_

**Veronica smiled as she hung up the phone. **_Well that's certainly interesting..._

**"Who was that on the phone?" Mac asked, coming out of the bathroom, freshly showered in shorts and a tank top with a hoody on top. **

**"Oh, just Duncan, wanting to see if we wanted to go to dinner when we got back tonight."**

**"If he's buying, I'm in."**

**"Good, after the spa, we need to do some shopping then, find you a nice dress to wear to dinner."**

**"On second thought, you two should be alone..."**

**Veronica laughed, "Nope, you're not getting out of it that easy. It's just a dress Mac, not the end of the world."**

**"Alright, fine, put nothing pink or pastel." she said with a slight shiver.**

**They both laughed as they grabbed their room keys and headed downstairs to meet Hannah at the spa.**


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Sorry it's taken so long to get this chapter up. I've been on vacation and seriously didn't wanna come back to reality. Hope you all enjoy!

**Duncan was just raising his hand to knock on the door to Logan's room, when it swung open, and there stood Parker.**

**"Hey Duncan, Logan's in the shower. You're welcome to come in and wait. Sorry I can't keep you company, but I'm running late. I was supposed to meet Gia, Troy, and Casey downstairs 10 minutes ago. Bye!"**

**Before he even got a chance to respond, she had taken off down the hall to the elevator. He watched with amusement as she almost knocked Dick over, who was trying to get off. She quickly shoved past him and left him staring at her, as she repeatedly mashed the button for the lobby. When the door closed, he turned towards Duncan.**

**"Dude, what was that about?"**

**"I have no idea, she was like that when she opened the door. She said something about being late to meet Gia, Troy, and Casey, then took off."**

**"Since when is she friends with them? I thought she'd be chillin at the spa with Ronnie and Mac today, but they're still in their room eating breakfast."**

**Duncan gave him a pointed look, and shook his head in amusement.**

**"What?"**

**"Nothing man. So what's going on with you and Mac? You've been hanging out with her a lot lately."**

**If he didn't know any better, he would say Dick was blushing, as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and stared at his flip-flops. Luckily for him, Logan chose then to exit his room.**

**"You two chuckle-heads plan on coming inside, or are you gonna hang out in the hallway with the door open all day?"**

**Both guys quickly shuffled through the door.**

**"So I figured we could have a guys day since we're girl free today." Duncan said, taking a seat on the couch. "Veronica talked to Wallace this morning and he said he'd head over here after he took a shower, I'm kind of surprised he's not here yet."**

**Logan shifted restlessly from foot to foot, appearing to be lost in thought.**

**Dick waved his hand in front of his face, "Yo, Echolls, you in there?"**

**He snapped out of his daze and turned to look at him, "Huh?"**

**"Duncan asked what we're doing today since we're chic free and said Wally will be joining us."**

**"Oh, well Parker and I broke up last night, so I kind of wanted to find Hannah today..."**

**Duncan and Dick shared a look of surprise.**

**"Well did you tell her that?" Dick asked.**

**Duncan tried not to laugh and Logan snorted in reply.**

**"What, I'm just saying, she seemed awfully happy this morning for someone who just got dumped and threw such a jealous fit when Ronnie showed up."**

**Logan ran a hand through his hair, "Actually, she's the one who broke up with me."**

**"All that work for nothin man? Well, you're better off, now we can spend guys day scoping out some hot chics."**

**Logan shook his head and smiled, "Thanks for the support Dick, but I think I wanna try to find Hannah and talk to her today, and you two already have 'hot chics' so there'd be no point."**

**"Well I don't have a hot chic." Wallace said walking into the room. "Hope you don't mind, the door was just hanging open and you won't be able to hang out with Hannah either."**

**His head shot up hearing her name, "What do you mean? Why the hell not? Did she leave early or something?"**

**"No, she's the one that invited Mac and V to the spa today for girl bonding."**

**Logan plopped down on the couch, "When the hell did they become friends?"**

**"I dunno man, but I saw her go to V's room after the bar-b-que the other night. Didn't hear her leave for like an hour. I don't know what they were talking about."**

**Duncan laughed, "My guess would be that she was either looking for advice, or wanted to know more about you; and who better to ask than your ex-girlfriend who's known you half your life. Either that or she has some who done it that needs to be solved."**

**Logan blew out a big breath as he leaned back on the couch and ran his hands through his hair, "I'm gonna go with option one, but neither one is promising." He rolled his eyes as he sat back up, "Great, this is just what I needed. I finally get her to forgive me, and now I'll be accused of six more crimes by lunch time."**

**The rest of the guys laughed, and Dick sat forward in his seat.**

**"Hey, you should talk to Ronnie, maybe she can get Hannah to come to dinner with me and Mac, then you can show up and it could be like a double date or whatever."**

**Logan laughed and shook his head, "First of all, I don't think she'd agree to go as a third wheel, and second when have you ever been on a date?"**

**"And when did you ask Mac out? Last I heard, things were still 'complicated'." Wallace asked.**

**Dick's face paled a little, "Uh, I didn't exactly ask her. I told Ronnie I wanted to take her out and she agreed to get her to the restaurant downstairs at 7."**

**Duncan and Logan shared a look, "Uh don't take this the wrong way man, but **_**have**_** you ever been on a date? Madison doesn't even count, all you two did was screw like rabbits." Duncan said.**

**"And Mac's not the kind of girl you can just take to dinner then hop in the sac with. If this ends badly, you know Ronnie's gonna castrate you," Logan added.**

**Dick stood up and paced in front of the couch, "You think I don't know that? This is completely uncharted territory for me, but I like her, she's cool. I don't have to be anybody for her, ya know? She doesn't care if I can get her in to some party, or how much money I've got. She already knows all my secrets and flaws."**

**Duncan nodded, "I get it man. Just be careful, you're both our friends. We just don't want to see either of you get hurt, it could be really messy."**

**Wallace snorted, "But isn't that what you're all best at, hurting each other and making things messy?"**

**They all started laughing.**

**Duncan clapped him on the back, "You know Wallace, you're right. That's something that we all need to work on, being a team again, friends, having eachother's backs instead of stabbing eachother's backs."**

**They all nodded, then Dick spoke up again, "Now that we all agreed to help eachother out, I could really use you guys help with the Mac situation. You've all done this dating stuff before. What am I supposed to do after we have dinner? What if dinner is completely awkward and we have nothing to talk about? I'm kinda freaking out here. Maybe I should just call Ronnie and tell her to forget the whole thing."**

**"No, no, it's fine. We'll help you out." Duncan said. "You call the restaurant and change the reservations to dinner for 8, I'll call Veronica and tell her to let Mac and Hannah know we're all gonna have dinner together. It'll help break the ice. Then after dinner we can each go our separate ways if we want to, or find something else to do."**

**"Uh, you're all forgetting one thing," Wallace said.**

**The other 3 looked at eachother and shared a confused look before Logan spoke up, "What?"**

**"Uh hello, reservations for 8? Who am I supposed to bring? You've all coupled off and taken all the ladies..."**

**"Are you telling me you can't find a date in the next 9 hours?" Logan asked.**

**"Oh I see how it is, leave a brother out to dry. Alright, you guys do what you gotta do, I'll be down at the pool finding me a date."**

**"Awesome," Dick said, clapping him on the back. "I'll go call the restaurant right now."**

**"You really think this is a good idea?" Logan asked, when they had both left the room.**

**Duncan gave him a smile, "Yeah, I think it'll be fun. Kind of like the old days, and I think we could all use a little fun before we have to go back to the real world."**

**"I hope you're right. I'm gonna get changed to head down to the pool, check on Wallace. Go ahead and call Ronnie, we'll swing by and pick up Dick on our way down."**

**"Sounds like a plan." **_**I just hope everything goes well and no one kills anybody else before dinner's over.**_

**Down at the Spa...**

**"Ok girls, now that we're beautified, let's go shopping!" Veronica exclaimed.**

**Hannah and Mac gave each other a questioning look, "Is she always like this?" Hannah asked.**

**"Well, she did use to be on pep squad."**

**"Ah, that explains it."**

**"Oh hush you two. I'm just excited that everything seems to be going right for a change and I want to enjoy it before something else happens to ruin it." Veronica admonished.**

**"I'll agree with that," Mac said. **

**"Alright then, we have 4 hours to find some dresses and get ready for dinner."**

**"Are you should I should come with you guys Veronica? It won't be weird for me to just show up at your dinner like that?" Hannah asked.**

**"It's fine, I already talked to Duncan, he knows you're coming."**

**"It's not Duncan I'm worried about..." she mumbled under her breath.**

**"Logan knows you're coming too, in fact Mr. Broody was looking for you today, but Wallace told him you were with us."**

**"Great, so this is a couples dinner." Mac complained.**

**"No it's not, Wallace and Dick don't have dates."**

**Veronica smiled to herself as she saw Mac perk up a little bit at the mention of Dick. She didn't understand what was going on between them, but she was happy that they both seemed to be happy.**

**"Ok then, let's go. I don't want to spend the next 4 hours trying on dresses." Mac finally relented.**

**Two hours and 5 stores later, the girls returned to the hotel with their purchases. They headed up to their rooms to take showers and Hannah agreed to meet in Veronica and Mac's room after they were done to finish getting ready. An hour later she knocked on the door; dress, heels and make up bag in hand. Mac opened the door and let her in. **

**Hannah helped Mac with her hair and makeup while Veronica opted to do her own. Mac went to get dressed while Veronica helped Hannah with her makeup, then went to put her own dress on while Hannah finished her hair. 45 minutes later they were all done and sitting in the living room talking for a few minutes before heading down to the restaurant to meet the guys. Mac was wearing a simple, black, knee length dress with the top half of her hair pulled back in a silver barrette, and some cute black ballet flats. Veronica had on a flowing white calf length dress and some leather sandals, and Hannah wore a simple green and white knee length sundress with some white flip flops. They were all very cute but casual.**

**"You sure you guys don't think this dress is a little to dressy?" Mac asked for what felt like the 5th time in the last 10 minutes.**

**Veronica and Hannah rolled their eyes.**

**"For the 10 millionth time, you look great, and the great thing and the LBD, is that it can be dressy or casual." Hannah said**

**"LBD?"**

**"Little black dress, and she's right, the way you're wearing it now with the ballet flats, simple jewelry, and your hair half down says cute and casual," Veronica explained.**

**"But if you wore your hair up, with a little heavier make up, some sparkly jewelry and heels, then you have a sexy party dress." Hannah added.**

**"Well thanks for the fashion lesson. Can we just go downstairs now before I change my mind and decide to spend the night in bed with some ice cream?"**

**Hannah laughed and shook her head good natuerdly, "And here I thought I was supposed to be the nervous one here."**

**Veronica opened the door, "Come on girls, there's some guys waiting down stairs to drool over how great we look."**

**Hannah laughed as Mac swallowed nervously and followed her out the door. They piled into the elevator and rode in silence to the lobby.  
**


End file.
